


Honest Engine

by Rebekah_Zellers



Series: Tadpole Series [32]
Category: NCIS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-19
Updated: 2018-09-19
Packaged: 2019-07-14 13:17:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 25,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16041236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rebekah_Zellers/pseuds/Rebekah_Zellers
Summary: Nathan's Nest is open, bringing the children to make four new friends.  Friends that will humble the hearts of those they meet and set the DiNozzo Gibbs family on a new journey that changes lives...  lots of lives.





	1. Chapter 1

Tony buzzed around his office at Nathan’s Nest, there was so much to do before his kids came after school. Nathan was in the middle of his preschool day, a program that Tony was so proud of. Teachers from all over the United States had interviewed to be part of the special needs preschool; Nathan was one of ten that utilized the resource.

“Mr. DiNozzo?” A soft voice called from the doorway. “Sir, I was wondering if you have a moment.”

“What can I do for you, Allison?” Tony took a seat, at his desk, while waiting for the Social Worker to state her business.

“Well, I have been appointed the staff representative to a growing problem that we seem to have. The rehab staff is growing concerned, they are finding evidence that someone or ones have been staying on the grounds after the close of business. The area near the utility room seems to have some heavy traffic. They noticed the landscaping has been harmed, not necessarily intentionally, but the bushes have some branches that are bent, the flower beds have foot prints in them. The area that the children use to dig in the dirt and sand for sensory therapy is smoothed over every morning, that is not how it is being left at night.”

“Can you show me?” Tony stood to walk outside. Allison gave her boss the tour, pointing out what the staff was noticing over the last week or two. “I see what you are saying. Nothing has been reported missing, there is no signs of break in or even an attempt. The spot that they are occupying really provides nothing for them.”

“Except heat,” Gibbs stated as he walked up on the conversation. “Sorry, I overheard what you were talking about, I came out here to see for myself. Is it possible that we have a homeless person living on the grounds?”

“Would make sense,” Tony sighed. “There is more than one, the footprints are different. Someone in the group has some pride, they clean up.”

“Tony, come look at this. They sift through the trash, taking out what can be recycled.” Gibbs called from the dumpster area. “They have a neat pile off to the side, someone is going to a lot of trouble to earn some change.”

“We’ve been talking about recycling at the meetings,” Tony sighed. “Maybe we could put a recycle dumpster in.”

 

“You do that, you could be taking a meal out of someone’s mouth.” Gibbs sighed. “What if you put in an extra one, instructed the staff to try their best to put bottles, cans and other plastics in it? If someone has enough pride to take care of our grounds, they wouldn’t steal what’s marked to recycle.”

“Mr. DiNozzo?” Sandy called from the door leading outside, she was holding a sobbing Nathan. “He fell asleep during quiet time, had a bad dream, I couldn’t get him to calm down.”

“Hey baby,” Tony took his youngest into his arms. Holding Nathan close, Tony rubbed his back and hummed waiting for his little fella to calm down. “It’s okay, baby. You’re safe, I’ve got you. Grandpa’s right here too.”

“You were gone!” Nathan gasped. “I was going all over the place looking and looking and you were gone. Nobody was there! You left me!”

“My precious boy,” Tony moved to sit on a bench so that Gibbs could join him. “We are never, ever going to leave you. You are our heart. Every day that you are in my life, you make me so happy. I love being your dad, that’s why I could never leave you anywhere.”

“Me either,” Gibbs chimed in. “My favorite part of the day is when you come wake me up for breakfast.”

“Honest engine?” Nathan looked at his dad as he wiped his tears.

“Honest engine,” Tony nodded.

“Grandpa? Honest Engine?” Nathan wiggled his way onto his grandpa’s lap.

“Honest Engine, buddy. Listen, I was thinking that when we get home today that maybe we could try out those bubble blasters and see if we can make Nemo go nuts.” Gibbs cuddled Nathan close. “I love you, buddy.”

“I love you buddy and daddy,” the little boy giggled. “Why did you come out here?”

“Well, someone is staying here at night when we aren’t here. I was trying to figure it out.” Tony smiled at his little boy as he looked around. 

“Walter and his three friends live over by that window at night.” Nathan pointed out. “They don’t have a home, but they are safe here.”

“How do you know that?” Gibbs questioned.

“I know them! Tad showed me.” Nathan looked around waving when he saw his brothers and sisters coming into the play yard. “Tad, tell daddy about Walter.”

“Did you meet him? He’s a nice guy! He has three friends, they were all Navy. Now, they don’t have no home. They won’t go to the shelter, they said that is for families with kids and they ain’t going to take nobody’s bed when they can find a place to stay warm. I showed them how to get in, they stay by the janitor room because it blows warm air out. Nancy leaves them the food that she has to throw out at the end of the day and they look for recycling. That way they have money to use the showers at the bus station.” Tad explained. “They are honest men, dad. I promise.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about them?” Tony sighed. “We would have helped them.”

“They don’t want handouts,” Gabe piped in. “They have their pride, dad.”

“I need to go potty,” Nathan whispered in Tony’s ear. Tony hurried off with his little boy leaving Gibbs with the kids.

“Where do they stay during the day?” Gibbs questioned his grandsons. “I want you to show me where they come in at, where you met them and where you meet with them. I want you to show me right now.”

“They come in over here, this is big enough for a man to get through.” Gianna pointed to the space between the fence and the building. During the day, they stay over there. The heat comes up through the road grate. During the day, they sometimes come over to the playground. The lunch ladies feed them anything that is left over after all the lunches are served.”

“You knew about them, princess?” Gibbs was stunned. “You didn’t tell me?”

“Grandpa, they are people. My teacher says that we help them as much as they let us to help because they are men that served to protect us. We do what we can to take care of them without making them feel like they are bad people.” Gianna sighed. “All the classes on this side of the building know them, we help them as much as we can.”

“Go inside,” Gibbs sighed. “Find your dad, tell him where I am at. I want you to get your homework done, we have things to do when we leave.”

“Hi,” a voice called out as Gibbs walked down to the bridge. “It’s warmest right here. If you stand over here, you are out of the wind. Can we offer you some water? Perhaps a slice of bread? I think we have some peaches left. They came out of a can, but they were just opened today.”

“Name’s Gibbs.” Jethro extended a hand.

“I’m Walter, that’s Mitch, Matthew and Henry.” Walter shook Jethro’s hand. “Haven’t see you around here before. Stay close, these streets can get rough.”

“You’re Navy?” Gibbs tilted his head to question his new friends.

“As Navy as you are Marine,” Mitch spoke up. “You’re Gabe’s grandpa?”

“I am,” Gibbs nodded. “Would you like to come take a tour of the inside of the building? See what they do there?”

“Gabe told us about little Nathan,” Henry smiled as he picked up his belongings. “He says the kid is the reason that the part of town is now filled with angels.”

“There is some truth to that,” Gibbs laughed. “Tony, my son, he was inspired to create Nathan’s Nest after seeing all that Nathan needed and couldn’t get at his age or level of disability. Did Gabe tell you about Gianna?”

“Sure did,” Walter nodded. “Pretty as a picture and a real warrior. Gabe lights up when he talks about her.”

“Kids?” Tony watched out his office window as Gibbs started across the parking lot with the four men. “Are there just four of them in the group that you know?”

“Yes,” Gabe answered softly. “Walter, Mitch, Matthew and Henry, I promise they are really good guys, dad.”

“I’m trying to figure out how to help them without upsetting them,” Tony mumbled.

“Put them to work,” Gianna shrugged. “They are men. Even when grandpa isn’t feeling good, he likes to work in his shop. If they won’t stay in the shelter, they have to be offered some place that they don’t think they are taking a bed away from a family.”

“You’re starting to sound like Grace,” Tony snickered. “Let’s meet them, I’ll figure it out in a bit. Nathan, are you ready?”

Munching on his apple, the little nodded. “I’m almost done, I just need two bites and my big drink.”

“Take it slow,” Gianna cautioned. “Don’t choke.”

“Tony, this is Walter, Mitch, Henry and Mathew.” Gibbs introduced the men to his son. “You guys already know Tad and Gabe. This is Gianna, Shelby and Nathan.”

“Gianna,” Walter gasped. “You are as beautiful as Gabriel described you. Little Shelby, I can see you are cowgirl at heart. Do you ride horses?”

“Yes, sir. We have a horse in our barn.” Shelby put a foot out to show off her pink boots. 

“Those boots are beautiful,” Walter winked. “I used to have horses.”

“Why don’t you guys come in and sit down?” Tony pointed to the area behind the sofa that was in his office. “I’d put your bags out of tripping range. They are active and clumsy.” Tony laughed.

“You must be Nathan,” Mitch watched the little boy take a bite of his apple while everyone was talking. “You are just as cute as Tad said you were. How are you feeling?”

“I’m four,” Nathan giggled. 

“Feeling four?” Mitch laughed. “That’s the best answer. I heard you have a bunny that you carry everywhere and that you love Mickey Mouse.”

“Mickey is my whole life!” Nathan wiggled off his chair. “This is my bunny, he’s my best friend. We go all the places together, I losted him one time and Gigi found him for me.”

“Dad,” Gianna pointed to the computer screen. “There is a huge snow storm coming, we better get home. They said we won’t be able to be on the roads after nine.”

“We need to get to the grocery store,” Tony sighed. “Okay, gentlemen. I want you to grab your things and come with me. You are not staying outside in the weather that is coming. You’re going to be roughing it a bit, I have to think this out a bit.”

“What do you need us to do?” Walter looked outside, his heart thankful for not having to huddle against a building to fight elements tonight. “We appreciate the shelter, we’ll work for it.”

“Kids, let’s go. Men, you’re coming with us.” Tony looked to the parking lot. “Now to figure out how we’re all getting home.” 

“Put the kids in the van,” Gibbs pointed. “Gianna, Gabe and Tad in the last seat. Henry, I think you’ll fit just fine beside Nathan. Matthew, you take the front with Tony. Mitch and Walter, you’re with me in my truck. Drop everyone off at home, Tony can take off for the store with Gianna.”

“Why does she get to go and not me?” Tad pouted.

“Because her homework is done, I am betting that your homework is not. Even if you get a snow day tomorrow, the rules are that homework gets done.” Gibbs watched his grandson pout. “That means you will do your homework before you get to know our new friends.”

“Yes, sir.” Tad sighed. 

“Tony,” Matthew said softly as he rode beside his new friend. “Why are you trusting us?”

“Your character speaks for itself,” Tony replied. “You care enough to clean up after yourselves, to tidy up the playground for the kids at the center. If you were going to do something reckless, you would have done it by now. You could have stolen everything we have at the center, Tad says you know how to get in. You haven’t touched anything. From what I have seen, you work for everything that was available to you. You’re Navy, I spent most my career investigating crimes against those that served in the Navy and Marines. I know good men when I see them.”

“What happened there?” Henry pointed to a bump on Nathan’s hand. “You get hurt?”

“No, a mosquito bited me,” Nathan sigh. “He’s dead now, I squished him.”

“Was it a big one?” Henry teased. “I once saw a mosquito that was as big as this car.”

“Honest engine?” Nathan’s eyes were huge. 

“No, I am just teasing.” Henry winked. 

“Dad, we got a real character here,” Tad sighed. “We’re going to have to watch this one.”

“Yeah, we better watch him!” Nathan chimed in.

“I can’t go along with my teasing when he says honest engine,” Henry sighed. “My insides turn to Jell-O just looking at his sweet little face.”

“What kind of Jell-O?” Nathan wiggled around in his car seat. “Daddy makes me green jell-o with grapes in it. That tastes so good! Grandpa makes me purple jell-o and he puts his secret weapon in it, I don’t know what it is, but it’s so good I eat the whole bowl!”

“Expressions are lost on this kid,” Henry sighed. 

Leaning forward, Gianna whispered softly. “He’s four, expressions come when you are about seven or eight. Gabe and Tad don’t understand all of them either.”

“At least he’s cute,” Gabe defended. “He’s a good brother, you just have to get to know him. He’s never had a family or love before us, so he’s still getting used to things.”

“What?” Matthew looked to Tony. “Honest Engine?”

“Honest Engine,” Tony sighed. “I’ll explain later, I don’t want to upset him.”

“Look!” Nathan giggled. “My feet are dancing machines.”

“Want me to turn up the music?” Tony called back to his kids.

“Rock it, daddy!” Shelby giggled, her feet bouncing with Nathan’s

“All my kids are adopted,” Tony whispered to Matthew. “Each of them has their own story, one that shows just how strong they are.”


	2. Chapter 2

Note: If I stray from actual medical facts, I am claiming dramatic licensing. If someone can have open heart surgery on TV and be out of the hospital tackling the bad guys and taking them to jail the next day, I get a little wiggle room LOL

 

 

“Gianna, I want you to show the men where the wood is outside and where we stack it to keep it dry when a storm is coming. I need it all moved to dry ground before it starts snowing.” Tony gave his oldest direction.

“Got it! Gentlemen, follow me.” Gianna marched outside to show the men where they needed to start working. “All that wood needs to go in there.” Pointing to the closed room off back of the house. “Dad and grandpa can get to it from inside the house.”

“Boys, I need you to get all the sleeping bags,” Tony pointed to his office. “Put them on the floor in my office, in front of the sofa. I don’t want to be tripping over them.”

“Gibbs, I am heading to the store, I am going to take Gianna with me if she is done showing the men to their chores. When I get back, we need to find out Henry’s story and how Jackson doesn’t know his friend is homeless.” Tony sighed. “How did we miss that?”

“I’ll get the boys to help me pull out the sofa bed in the suite,” Jethro sighed. “Somehow, we screwed up. We know now, so we work at helping, that’s what we do.”

“What else could we be missing, Jethro? It took the kids to tell us Sarah was being abused. It took the kids to show us that a friend of the family was homeless. What else?” Tony started pacing.

“Dad,” Gianna stepped into the living room. “We better go grocery shopping before the snow hits. Grace is on her way over, her husband it out of town and I was worried she could be left in the cold if the power goes out.”

“See,” Tony pointed at his daughter. “Didn’t know that either.”

“Dad,” Gianna pointed to the door. “Let’s go; you can beat yourself up after we have food.”

“Did you know that Henry is Grandpa Jackson’s friend that we met when we did the bunny train?” Tony questioned in the car.

“Yes, that is why I knew it was safe to help him. We didn’t break any rules, because Henry is our friend and you always taught us to help friends. Dad, he didn’t want anyone to know. He probably wouldn’t have let us help him if it wasn’t for the other guys. Let’s just get the food and things, we’ll figure out how to help them. We need to keep a promise to Henry, dad. Grandpa Jackson can’t find out.”

“Jethro?” Walter came in from where he had finished stacking wood. “Got a broom? We’d like to sweep up.”

“You don’t,” pausing Gibbs walked to the garage. “You’ll find brooms, a shovel and large trash can in there. When you’re done, find me. I have a couple more things we need to do.”

“Yes, Gunny.” Walter smiled. 

“Grandpa,” Gabe grunted. “We got all sleeping bags, I brought the extra ones we have too. I think Grace is here. I’m going to go help her in.”

“Handsome,” Grace exclaimed. “I’m so happy to see you.”

“Park over there so you don’t lots of snow on your car; daddy says guest should park there if they are staying the night or days.”

“Ma’am?” Mitch met Grace at her car. “May I help you get your things in?”

“Thank you so much. I’m Grace.” Extending a hand, Grace watched as Mitch’s eyes danced with delight at her acceptance of him. “Gabe, how long do we have before this storm hits?”

“About three hours,” Gabe sighed. “It’s going to be a bad one. Dad went to get enough food for two weeks, I think.”

“Henry, this is Ms. Grace. She’s the lady that Gianna was talking to earlier.” Mitch smiled a bashful smile at his friend. “She’s pretty.”

“She is that,” Henry laughed. “Are you being a gentleman and helping her in with her things?”

“Yes, sir. I am doing a mighty fine job of it too.” Mitch marched past everyone into the house. “Tad, where do Ms. Grace’s bags go?”

“Combination of a head injury and PTSD,” Henry sighed. “Good kid, heart of gold. Family tossed him out because they couldn’t deal with his moods. He’s never been a problem for me, I keep him busy and feeling valued.”

“What do your men need, Henry?” Grace looked towards the house. “I’m sure it’s been a while since you had a good shower, clothes washed and a good meal.”

“We get by,” Henry looked inside. “We don’t take charity, Ms. Grace.”

“I wasn’t offering charity,” Grace stuck her chin out in a business-like fashion. “I want to make you an offer. Can you paint?”

“Mitch is great at painting,” Henry smiled. “We painted a few rooms in the school over Christmas break, got enough money together to get a motel room for the holidays. We didn’t want to be confused with the drunks that were on the street.”

“Understandable,” Grace nodded. “I have several rooms in my home that need painted and I want to get my basement waterproofed and painted. Think you guys could handle that job?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Henry nodded.

“I am going to advance your pay for a day’s work for all of you.” Grace waved her credit card in front of Henry. “Go get your men, let’s go shopping for what you need. When we get back, I will borrow Gianna’s computer and get a contract drawn up so you know I’m serious.”

“She’s serious,” Tad chimed in. “Aunt Grace doesn’t give charity, she believes that you have to work for what you get so that you have respect for it.”

“What did you have to work for?” Mitch asked his new friend.

“She hired me to rake her yard. I had to clean up the mess left over by the lawn people.” Tad shook his head. “Took me two days with my brother and grandpa helping me. She paid us in the best cupcakes and cookies that I ever had.”

“Oh! I can get stuff to bake while we are out. Come on guys, we have stuff to do.” Grace got in her car watching as Mitch followed Henry into the back seat with Matthew and Walter joining her. “You are going to learn the thrill of dollar store and thrift store shopping with me, the expert.” Grace giggled. “Now, don’t worry when you see that they know me here. I have a slight obsession with these stores.”

“Ma’am,” Walter spoke up. “Appreciate the work, how much are you paying us? Not to be rude, we just don’t want to overspend.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Grace winked. “I have you for more than one day of work. My house is old, it needs lots of love. You’re going to have plenty to keep you busy. Now, you have no idea how cool these kids are. We’re going to need pajamas, socks and underwear. You’re going to watch to get a couple shirts and some pants. These kids play hard, they are going to give you a work out.”

The men shopped cautiously, they were worried they were going to upset Grace. Grace, not missing a beat, watched the sizes the men selected and added purchases as she went. They made quick work of the dollar store getting shampoo, soap, shaving supplies. They even took the time to get items like deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes and lotion. 

“Ms. Grace,” Mitch took his friend’s hand. “Thank you for my job and for my new things. This is the nicest stuff I have had in a very long time.”

“You are welcome,” Grace smiled. “You are going to make my home look so beautiful, I can’t wait for the weather to break because I have plans for the outside too. How are you at gardening? I would like some flower beds and maybe even a vegetable garden. This is my house,” Grace pulled into her driveway. “Let’s take a look around, maybe you will have some ideas. We better hurry, the storm is about an hour away.”

Henry’s heart was full of gratitude as he looked around Grace’s home. He checked over the rooms and the yard, he made a quick trip down to the basement to see what that job would require.

“Look forward to working with you, Ms. Grace.” Henry said softly as they got into the car. “Your home is already beautiful, but we can help you make it a place you love.”

Arriving back at the house, the men gathered their purchases and made their way inside to find the family working together in the kitchen on dinner. Nathan being the first to greet them.

“Hi! I hope your tummy is empty because they are cooking machines!” Nathan giggled. “It gets really loud sometimes, but don’t get scared.”

“Nathan, why don’t you show the guys where they are going to be sleeping tonight.” Gibbs suggested, he wanted to see what the little boy did. He was still a bit shy at times, a little unsure of himself and his place in the family.

“Come on,” grabbing his bunny, the little man marched down the hallway. “I sleep in there, you can come see me if you get scared. You are going to sleep in here. All your stuff is in here and you and put your new stuff in here.”

“Do you want to wash up?” Gianna questioned as she walked into the in-law suite. “Someone can use that shower. Mitch, you should come with me, I think I know what you’d like to do.”

“Miss Gianna, is it okay if I come help you get him started?” Henry was rather protective of his friend.

“Yes, bring a change of clothes there is a shower in there that you can use.” Gianna marched down the hallway. 

“This is my bathtub,” Nathan pointed out for Mitch. “I putted all my favorite toys in there for you to play with. That is my shampoo if you get it in your eyes it don’t hurt.”

“Please feel free to use it,” Gianna winked. “We have so many bottles of that stuff in the closet, I think there is enough for baths for Nathan for a year. Towels are right here. When you are done, put them on the rack so they can dry before we put them in the hamper to be washed. If you put a wet towel in the hamper it grows bacteria.”

(It really does, always let your towels and wash clothes dry before tossing them into the dirty laundry basket).

“Which is an issue for the little buddy?” Henry pointed to where Nathan was showing Mitch where the bubbles were at.

“We have to be careful with both of us,” Gianna sighed. “We have to watch everything for the rest of our lives.”

“Well, you have to do it,” Henry sighed before turning to his charge. “He’s never going to want to get out of the bathtub with all these toys. I wouldn’t want to get out either.”

 

“He’ll get out,” Gianna giggled. “Nathan will get him out, he’s got powers of persuasion.”

Henry listened as Mitch played with the toys that Nathan left him, his imagination working overtime as it kept him entertained. “Nathan?” Henry was surprised to find the little boy waiting in the bedroom. “Everything okay?”

“Yes, Sir.” The little guy nodded. “Can Mitch play cars with me?”

“I bet he would like that,” Henry struggled against the tears. “That might just get him out of the bathtub.” Turning back towards the bathroom, Henry called to his friend. “Mitch, Nathan was wondering if you could play cars with him?”

“Can I be a blue one?” Mitch called out as he stood to get out of the tub. “I like blue, that’s my favorite color. We can crash them and make the do tricks.”

“You have to get dried off and dressed first,” Henry laughed. “Not sure I’ve seen you this excited before. Put your clothes on, remember it’s not proper to go without with the ladies present.”

“Nobody wants to see your butt,” Tad called into the bathroom. “They make us wear clothes too. Dad gets pretty upset when we try to be chipmunks in front of the ladies!”

“Chipmunks, Gunny?” Walter questioned from the hallway.

“Chip & Dale strippers,” Gibbs sighed. “We have video of this, I will show you after they go to bed. It’s funny now, it was a bit mortifying at the time.”

 

“Nathan,” Gibbs walked into the bedroom and put his arms out. “It’s time to eat dinner. Are you having fun?”

“He played with my bath toys and we were playing cars. We are friends.” Nathan turned to see if Mitch was coming. “Mitch, you can sit with me and my grandpa. He’s a good guy.”

“You can trust them with him, Henry.” Grace whispered. “If anyone will take care of him, it’s this family. You’ve earned some rest. Now, let’s go eat. I have no idea what they are cooking, but it smells good.”

“Ma’am, are we taking your bed?” Walter pointed towards the guest suite. “We don’t mind sleeping on the floor in another part of the house. It’s just nice to be out of the cold.”

“She stays with me, I have two beds in my room. Sometimes, I get really sick and that is where someone sleeps to watch over me. They are great for slumber parties too!”

“Bow your heads,” Gabe said loudly after everyone squeezed in around the table. “Thank for the food and our friends. Make it snow so much that we have to stay home for a whole week. Amen.”

“Unique prayer,” Walter snorted. “Amen.”

“Walter, do you want to go work out with us in the gym with me and Matthew?” Tad called as he took his plate to the sink. “We’re going to lift weights and get muscles like a wrestler.”

“Maybe, I better supervise. You know, you can’t grow muscles like that overnight, it’s going to take a while.” Walter cautioned.

“Do the ladies dig muscles?” Gabe questioned. “Tad’s girlfriend is a bit older, he’s probably going to want to work out real hard to keep her.”

“You got a girlfriend?” Matthew asked Gabe.

“I’m a free agent,” Gabe beamed. “I like to keep my options open, you never know what might come along.”

“Henry,” Gibbs put a hand on the man’s shoulder. “What happened? When did this happen?”

“I’ve been on the streets five years, Jethro.” Henry hung his head in defeat. “You have to understand something, I only spend money on my daughter and grandkids on the holidays, the rest I leave in the bank. When I die, I want them to have something. I am saving for their future, Jethro.”

“Do they know you are homeless?” Gibbs questioned softly. “Henry?”

“My daughter does,” Henry wiped at his tears. “She’s only interested in how much money is waiting in the bank. I raised her better than that, I don’t know what happened. However, I won’t disappoint her, Gibbs. When I die, I want my daughter to be happy and if it is money that make her happy, that is what I will do for my baby girl.”

“But you are living on the streets,” Jethro whispered. 

“I know about your daughter, Leroy. Wouldn’t you have done the same thing for her if you could?” Henry watched the pain flicker in Jethro’s eyes as he turned to go check on Mitch.


	3. Chapter 3

“Henry,” Tony’s voice snapped the man to attention. “With me, now.” Making his way through the house, Tony stopped short at the kitchen where he found Jackson waiting. “Jack,” Tony paused.

“Leave us,” Jackson said softly to his grandson. “I will take care of this. Go find my boy, make sure he is okay.”

“Jackson,” Henry sighed.

“Sit down and shut up,” Jack pointed to the chair at the dining table. “How dare you take something that I told you, as a friend, and turn it on my boy. What in the hell do you think you were doing? Do you think that I am that stupid that I do not realize that you live on the streets? I don’t get tired of the clothes that I give you and your men, Henry. I help you and your men out as much as I can without taking a shot at your pride. I would be an idiot to not know your circumstances.”

“Jackson,” Henry stopped short when he saw the fire in his friend’s eyes. “Your family has no right to judge me. Look at the house they live in; they are just taking us in to make themselves feel good. Rich folks don’t care about us. Your son, he doesn’t care about us. Walking down to the bridge all high and mighty, then taking us in to make him feel better about having money.”

“Tony and his family, they changed our lives. My son, he still has his moments where he misses his girls so much that he can barely breathe, but he has these children now, and they complete him. This family completes me. I was back in Stillwater struggling to keep my store afloat and my home in order, Tony swooped in and gave me a life here, living out the rest of it with my son. He paid off my debt, moved me here and gave me a life. The only requirement was that I pass along the kindness, I haven’t wanted for a damn thing since I have been here. I passed along my kindness to you, because I thought you were my friend. For you to take my words and use them to hurt my boy, I really do not know you, Henry.. As far as these men, these good men, having money. They did not always have money, they spent their careers fighting crime against those serving in the Navy and Marines. They lived paycheck to paycheck until Tony’s sister was murdered and those circumstances changed their lives. Before you judge them, you should hear their stories. They didn’t judge you. They don’t feel sorry for you. These are good people Henry. Maybe you have been surrounded by a self-centered, self-involved family for so long you don’t know what a good one looks like.” Jackson stormed towards the living room stopping as he got to the doorway. “That boy of mine, he’s my world. I love him with every bone in my body and he loves me the same. Real love is when you look out for each other. Maybe you need to stop and think about the monster you have created with that girl of yours, she didn’t get that way over night.”

“I want to toss you out on your ear,” Tony seethed. “I won’t, because the reason you are here is because my children want to make a difference in your lives. However, if you say one more unkind thing to anyone, in this house, I will take you to the tack room in the barn and you can stay there until the storm passes. I love that man like a father, he’s the first man to love me like a father should love a child. Jackson’s love is unconditional, as is Jethro’s. Don’t you ever think about hurting either one of them again.”

“My grandpa doesn’t like apologies,” Gianna moved to stand in front of her dad. “A sincere gesture to show you are sorry is how you get your point across. I am very disappointed in you, I really thought that you were a better person than that. Next time I want to help someone, I am going to wonder if they are going to hurt my family.”

“She’s thirteen,” Tony kissed Gianna’s head. “Thank you for starting to jade her world with your mouth.”

Henry watched as the family retreated to go in search of Jethro. Moving to the back door, the older man stood watching it start to snow. “You’re an idiot, Henry.” The words were mumbled softly, but not missed by the little boy that was listening.

“Why did you say that?” Nathan marched over to Henry, his bunny tucked safely under his arm. “Mitch is my friend, you take care of him.”

“I do,” Henry took a seat so he could be closer to little Nathan. “I said something mean to your grandpa and I hurt his feelings. I shouldn’t have done that. Do you understand?”

“You used your words to be bad?” Nathan blinked hard as he looked up at Henry. “Why’d you do that?”

“Because I didn’t think before I spoke,” Henry explained. “I just said the words and they weren’t nice.”

“Okay,” Nathan walked over to the fridge. “Open this please.”

“What do you need?” Henry asked as he opened the fridge.

“Those are the toffee beans,” Nathan pointed to the bag that held the good coffee that Tony spoiled Jethro with. “They go in there.” The little boy pointed to the coffee maker. “You put water in there and turn it on. Whatever it makes, it makes my grandpa smile.”

“You want me to make him a cup of coffee?” Henry looked from the bag to the coffee maker. “This is going to work?”

“Honest Engine, it will. It has to be strong enough to put hair on his chest. Drinking thatt is how he gotted all that hairs on there.” Nathan wiggled up into the chair to wait for the coffee to start. “You got to do two and a half scoops.”

“You watch everything your grandpa does?” Henry questioned.

“He’s my bestest friend,” Nathan smiled. “We do all sorts of stuff together. Ever had a waffle? He makes the best! We go on walks together and see the birds.”

“Sounds pretty special to me,” Henry spoke as he started the coffee. “You are one lucky little guy.”

“Jethro?” Jackson made his way into the woodshop where Gibbs was sanding his current project. Days of boats were gone, these days he was always making something for the children. “Is that for the cabin?”

“I thought Nathan could use an actual bed,” Gibbs sighed. “I don’t want him on the floor. Gianna wants him to share the room with her and Shelby so that he can get some actual rest when we go to the cabin. I am thinking about adding onto it; we’re a growing family and we need more room. It’s not been just us going for a while.”

“It won’t be much longer until they are out of school for the summer,” Jackson sighed. “Time goes so fast, it was just yesterday that Tad was three and carrying around that teddy bear. Now, he’s almost ten, really becoming his own person. Won’t be too many more years before he doesn’t want to spend time with us because he has a girlfriend.”

“Wonder how he will break that to Rachel when the time comes?” Gibbs snorted with laughter. 

“Son, you know that I thought Henry was my friend,” Jackson’s hearts was beating in his ears. “I never would have told a stranger about your girls.”

“Our girls,” Jethro sighed. “I know dad, I’m not mad at you. I just needed to walk away for a while.”

“Grandpa?” Nathan called as he patted his hands on the door. 

“Hey little man,” Gibbs opened the door that lead to his bedroom. “What’s up?”

“He’s got ap-la-gee toffee for you,” the little boy pointed to where Henry was coming through the door. “I splained why he was bad.”

Taking the coffee, Gibbs took a drink. “Good coffee, thanks.”

“You can go now.” Nathan pointed at the door. “Grandpa, I want to hold you.”

Picking up his grandson, Jethro made his way to the closet chair. “Can you hold me closer?” Gibbs smiled as the little boy wrapped his arms and legs around him. “Oh my, this is so great. How did you know what I needed?”

“I’m your best friend ‘member? I know stuff.” Nathan giggled as he snuggled closer. “What’s you making?’

“Your bed for the cabin,” turning the little boy around, Jethro watched as he looked it over. “What do you think?”

“It has enough room for bunny and Owl!” Nathan’s laugh filled the air making Jethro and Jackson smile. “Does papa go to the cabin with us?”

“He’s never been!” Gibbs whispered. “But, I have a surprise for him.” Moving across the floor, Gibbs uncovered what looked to be a taller version of Nathan’s bed. “That’s his bed. I’m going to make him a nice chair to sit on so that he can enjoy the weather.”

“What are you doing outside my grandpa’s woodshop?” Gianna stood tall, she was ready to have it out with Henry.

“Took him some toffee, I mean coffee.” Henry explained only to become startled when the door opened.

“You ever build a house?” Jethro questioned.

“Was a carpenter for years,” Henry nodded. “I had a remodeling business too.”

“I have a piece of land, it has a cabin on it. I’ve added to it once, but I have a bigger project in mind. My family isn’t getting any smaller and we usually have company. Let me show you the plans for what we have now, see if we can figure out how to add to it without losing the rustic charm that we love. We do have plumbing and electric. Added those after Gianna came a few years ago. Needed to keep her medication cold and fluids ready for her.”

“You can still be rustic, but modern. What did you have in mind?” Henry walked over to the bench where Jethro’s plans were.

“Nathan?” Jackson sat by his grandson. “What’d you learn in school today?”

“A song,” Nathan stood tall. “Yes we have no nanas we have no nanas today. We got spring beans and unjin but daddy forgot the nanas so we have no nana today!”

“Where’s his family, Jethro?” Henry smiled as he listened to the little boy’s song. “How did that precious child end up here?”

“His parents are dead, they overdosed. From what we have been told, his biological family that remains is in no condition to take him. He was destined to be part of this family, he’s so loved.” Jethro paused to listen as Nathan tried to teach Jackson his song.

“How could you do that to your own flesh and blood?” Henry sighed.

“The world is full of people that have no clue how to treat their family,” Gibbs picked his words carefully, he did not want to have another exchange of word with Henry.

“Grandpa!” Nathan started giggling. “This guy can’t sing at all.” The little boy pointed to Jackson.

“I can’t either,” Gibbs laughed as he picked up his grandson. “Would you like to go find Mitch and see if he wants to play come more? Maybe we could find a game that we can all play.”

“Can we be partners?” Nathan turned to see if the others were coming. “Come on, men! You’re going to miss the fun!”

“Tell me about Gianna,” Henry stopped his friend. “She’s such a strong willed young woman.”

“She was on hospice care when we became her family,” Jackson explained. “She was abandoned by her family, they didn’t want a child with medical issues. Tony saw her alone in her room one day, bald head, big eyes and a smile that melted our hearts. The kids voted, they wanted her for a sister so we got a new member of our family. She needed a heart transplant and a bone marrow transplant. She’s a great kid. She loves with her whole heart and she’s fiercely protective, as you have seen. Jethro was the one that spent most the evenings with her at the hospital, Tony was there all day. Sometimes, they would switch. When you upset my son, you broke her heart. That young woman loves with her whole heart, she doesn’t always look before she leaps when it comes to helping people and loving them. She knows all about our girls, he told her while he thought she was sleeping.”

“I dream about them,” Gianna interjected from where she had been waiting on Jethro’s bed, stopping Gibbs in his tracks. “Sometimes, in my dreams, we go horseback riding and I fall into the water with Kelly and we have so much fun. In my dreams, we grew up to be best friends. Sometimes, I dream that they are the ones I live with when I die. Heaven isn’t lonely or a place that scares me, because I have them waiting for me. I know they will know me, because I have heard grandpa tell them about all of us. We have a puppy, we call him, Gunny. He’s always happy to see me in my dreams and he loves to chase Kelly.

“Princess?” Gibbs shifted Nathan to his hip. “You never told me any of this.”

“I didn’t want you to cry,” Gianna wiped at her tears. “I feel like in my dreams, I can tell them all about you. They tell me all the ways to take care of you and to let you know they love you.”

“They do?” Gibbs struggled to keep the tears from falling. 

“Kelly told me, in one of my dreams, that her favorite time with you was when you collected shells, at the beach, and together you made a necklace for Shannon for Mother’s Day.” Gianna smiled, her heart swelling with love as she realized what she had heard in her dream actually happened. “They were very happy being your family, grandpa; just like I am.”

“I never told you that,” Gibbs looked from Gianna to her dad. “I never told you that either, dad. That was the last Mother’s Day that I was home for. We had gone to the beach for spring break. How could you know that?”

“Son,” Jackson wiped at his eyes with a handkerchief. “Sometimes, we entertain angels unaware.”


	4. Chapter 4

“I can’t thank you enough,” Walter said softly. “I don’t know that we would have survived this storm, Tony. The weather man said there are record lows tonight. Talking about how you shouldn’t even allow your pets outside.”

“Everything happens for a reason,” Tony smiled. “My children taught me that. I never imagined that starting Nathan’s nest would bring so many of us together so quickly. Contractors worked, around the clock, at no charge, to complete the project. Companies donated items, staff applied without even knowing what was the long term vision. All that fell into place so quickly, we have been up and running a week, we get a spring blizzard and meet all of you.”

“A week?” Walter looked at Tony in disbelief. “We’ve been living alongside your building, at night, for a month.”

“My children were there, we had other children that came as part of the camp we set up on the completed side as a trial.” Tony sighed. “We didn’t know what was in store for us, but I knew we had to try.”

“I’m glad you did,” Walter smiled. “You saved our lives. I don’t know what happens after this snow storm is over, but I am looking forward to the adventure.”

“Me too,” Tony smiled. “Now, how about you gather laundry and we’ll get all your clothes cleaned up so you are ready for that adventure.”

Tony, Walter and Matthew worked at getting the laundry collected and separated. Matt took charge of completing the task to save Tony from having to do the work. 

“I’ll help!” Shelby made her way into the laundry room as Matt was pulling out a load of shirts to be folded. “I’ll grab the end.”

“You do this with your dad?” Matt questioned as he turned the shirt’s tail towards the little girl. “I bet your daddy teaches you all sorts of great things.”

“I can bake cookies and do laundry.” Shelby giggled. “I can burp loudest and I can run the fastest. I’m a ‘Nozzo!”

“Daddy?” Nathan walked into his dad’s office. “Got a minute?”

“For you, I have a million.” The loving father picked up his little boy and cuddled him. “What’s on your mind?”

“Can we have a lumber party?” Nathan pointed to the sleeping bags in front of the sofa on the other side of the room. “Mickey Mouse is over there and he’s wanting me to nuggle with him.”

“You really want to snuggle with Mickey?” Tony hugged the little boy. “I think a slumber party would be great, let’s see what everyone else thinks.”

“Hey gang?” Tony made his way into the living room with Nathan on his hip. “This little guy wants to know something. Go ahead and ask them.”

“You want a lumber party with me?” Wiggling around in anticipation, he was so excited when everyone said yes in unison. “Look out Mickey! Here I come!” As soon as his feet touched the floor, the little boy took off running for the office. When he returned, he had his sleeping bag in his arms. Giggling with pure joy, Nathan marched down the hallway to his bed. 

“What are you doing?” Tony asked as he walked in the bedroom. “Thought you wanted a slumber party?”

“Yes, get you take your lumber bag and go to bed.” Nathan smoothed out his sleeping bag, grabbed his bunny, Mickey and Owl, he was ready to sleep now.

“Okay gang,” Tony went down the hallway with a smile on his face. “As you can probably guess, he has his own idea on how a slumber party works. So, if you want, grab a sleeping bag and hit the sack or just use your blankets. Breakfast is at eight, coffee will be ready before that. If you need anything, come get me. Jackson, do you want to double with me or your son?”

“I was thinking I would bunk with my grandsons,” Jackson pointed to Gabe and Tad. “They have an extra bed in there, we have stories to tell and snow to watch fall.” Jackson winked at the boys.

“Yes!” Gabe did his happy dance. “I love it when he stays with us! Roll Tide!”

“Roll Tide?” Matt laughed. “They are real characters.”

“Matt,” Tony walked the man down the hall. “How did you become homeless?”

“VA listed me as dead,” Matt sighed. “Cut off all my benefits, lost everything. Fought them for years trying to get them to list me amongst the living. Once they did, I was so far in debt, it leaves nothing per month to live off of.”

“Nobody was around to help you straighten those things out?” Grace questioned from where she was listening in.

“No, ma’am. Nobody wants to talk to you if you don’t have the cash to pay them. VA legal services, they put me on a waiting list, but you have to have a phone for them to call you when you’re up.”

“How many more of your buddies are on the streets with you?” Tony watched as Matt gave it some thought. “I’m not going to turn anyone in, I would like to find a way to help you, if I can.”

“There are twenty-two of us,” Matt whispered. “They tried to put us in shelters and government housing, but we won’t take something a family should be placed in. It’s not right to have a child on the streets, Tony.”

“I agree,” DiNozzo smiled. “Get some rest, I need to do some thinking and researching. We’re going to help you, Matt. I am going to do everything that I can to keep you off the streets.”

“I don’t know how to repay you for all that you are doing for us,” Matt’s eyes filled with tears as he hugged his new friend. “You are a gift.”

“Let me make a phone call,” Grace headed for the bedroom to get her cellphone. “I want to see what is actually available to them, benefit wise. What can they take advantage of, or what is out there to help you with a project?”

“Let me know,” Tony smiled. “I am going to go tuck the kids in, I will be in my office after that researching. I can’t keep everyone here long term and be fair to my kids, but I can’t turn them out to the streets either.”

“You already know they will not go to a shelter,” Grace sighed. “Let me see what I can find out. I have friends that deal with grants and assistance. I will meet you in your office in a little bit.”

Tony and Grace worked late into the night working through to find the options they had for the men. By the time they were ready for bed, Tony had a plan; he just needed Jethro’s help to figure out the finer details and execute it.

“Daddy?” Nathan wiggled out of bed as Tony made his way into the bedroom around 2 a.m. “Where you been? I was missing you so much.”

“I was working in my office with Grace,” Tony replied softly as he picked the little boy up and hugged him close. “Do you think that, maybe, if I put your sleeping bag on my bed you could sleep up here?”

“I thought you’d never ask!” The little boy beamed as he wiggled down. Toddling over to the bed, he pulled the sleeping bag off along with Owl, Mickey and Bunny. By the time he got to Tony’s bed, his dad was ready to climb in. “We’re ready now.”

“This is my favorite way to sleep,” Tony whispered as he snuggled in. “Do you know, that you make everything in my life so much better?”

“I didn’t know that,” the little boy yawned. “Sleep daddy, you can’t be doing all this thinking right now. We can talk about it when the clock says six, three and zero.”

“You two were sleeping pretty sound when I checked on you,” Gibbs said softly as he handed Tony a cup of coffee, his youngest grandson was scaling the side of the chair to take a seat for breakfast.

“I was up late working on something with Grace,” Tony mumbled. “When I went to bed, he woke up because he was worried. I had him come snuggle with me.”

“You loved every moment of it,” Gibbs smiled. “You come up with a solution?”

“I have some ideas,” Tony sighed. Tony and Gibbs poured over the options that were available to the men. They both knew that pride would keep them from taking advantage of many of the benefits that Grace had discovered.

“That I did find,” Tony pulled up a real estate listing. “I found this multiplex apartment building, what I would like to do go for a tour and see exactly what type of shape it is in. Hire the guys to do any remodeling along with a crew, if it can be salvaged. There is an office building in the front, along with what was a town meeting hall. The property owner, from what I can find, didn’t want to deal with it any more so he let the bank take it back.”

“Which meant nobody was maintaining the property and the tenants left?” Gibbs questioned.

“From the news articles that I found, yes. There are grants that we can apply for to cover renovations if it is going to be veteran housing. I thought about a fundraiser, but I do not want to keep holding a hand out to our friends.” Tony looked towards Gibbs. “I will make a donation to get things moving. That is if this is what we do.”

“You know that meeting hall would make a nice store,” Jackson commented. “If you decide that this is what you are doing, I would like to give you the money from the sale of my store and house to get that going. You have paid for everything since I moved here, except food. You’ve even tried to give me an allowance, I have been saving money in addition to what I got from the store’s sale. If you are going to do this, I want to do that. It will sustain itself and I will consider it a loan that I can pay myself back on.”

“IF, this is what we are going to do, we can go to the auction downtown. They are selling off the contents of several buildings. We’ll see what we find when we can get out to go look. Too much snow out there to even risk it, besides, we have kids that have been looking out the window on and off all morning. This is probably the last snow storm of the season, let’s go play.” Tony shut his laptop and stood. “I’m going to bundle Nathan up and see if we can’t let him enjoy some part of this too.”

“Nathan?” Gibbs walked into the bedroom. “You want to go outside and play in the snow?”

“What?” Nathan looked up from where he was playing with his cars. “Honest Engine, I can go?”

“You can! Let’s go potty, your dad is going to come in and help you get all bundled up. Think it would be okay to leave your bunny in the house?” Gibbs knew he was asking a lot of the little boy.

“Where is he going to wait for me?” The little boy held on tight with tears in his eyes. “We go everywhere together, grandpa.”

“I know, but you don’t want him to get wet or cold do you?” Gibbs could barely handle the tears. “You know what, I have an idea. You get ready with your dad’s help and I will help bunny get ready.”

“You’re going to be easy with him, right? He’s just a little guy, I don’t want him to be hurt.” Nathan kissed bunny before handing him over. “I love him.”

“I know you do,” Jethro smiled. “I think this is going to be great!” Taking bunny to the kitchen, grandpa wrapped bunny in plastic wrap and put him in a large freezer bag. Nathan, hopefully, would not worry about suffocation. Walking down the hallway, Gibbs said a little prayer that Tad wouldn’t mention it as he returned the bunny to his owner.

“Wow, bunny has a snow suit on just like me!” Nathan giggled. “Daddy, I’m hot!”

“I know, little boo. Let’s go outside and play. Daddy is going to pull these warm clothes on, I don’t want to get sick! Are you ready?” Tony grabbed his boots in one hand and picked up Nathan under his other arm. “Look out snow, here we come!”

“We’re ready!” Tad and Gabe came marching down the hallway. “Aw man, does he have to come too?”

“That is not nice,” Gianna snapped. “You apologize right now.”

“Sorry, squirt.” Tad sighed. “Let’s go.”

“Grace,” Nathan giggled from where was being carried down the hallway. “Want to go a snow date with me?”

“I would love to,” the lady doctor smiled. “Let me get my boots on! I will meet you on the back porch.” Turning towards the living room, Grace winked. “Gentlemen, there is a whole lot of yard with a whole lot of snow to play in. You have snow gear, let’s get suited up!”

The kids played hard with the men. They had snowball fights, made snow men and were working on a snow cave when Nathan started to shiver. “Daddy, I’m so cold.”

“Okay, baby.” Tony picked up the little boy to carry him inside. “We’re going to get you warmed up, I promise. You hold bunny, we’re heading inside. We’ll put on your Mickey Mouse PJs with the feet in them. I’ll wrap you up in your sleeping bag and get you something warm to drink.”

“I was on a date,” Nathan’s teeth chattered.

“Oh, I am right here.” Grace peeked around Tony. “I want hot chocolate and my jammies! I would love it if you’d watch a movie with me.”

“Honest Engine? You’re not mad?” Nathan’s eyes grew wide when Grace shook her head no. “Daddy, she likes me.”

“I know,” Tony laughed. “What happened to not dating yet?”

“She’s a beautiful lady,” Nathan snuggled close. “Papa Jack says when you see a beautiful lady you have to strike while the iron is hot. Judge says that means you treat them special.”

“She’s a smart lady,” Grace smiled. “When I am with you, my heart is so happy.”

Tony and Grace worked together to get the little guy changed, a fire going and a movie in. By the time everyone else came inside, they were sacked out on the couch asleep.

“Is he okay?” Walter questioned. “Seemed pretty upset on and off out there. His brothers, I don’t think they meant any harm with the teasing.”

“He has trust issues, even at his age. I have been told that it is common with foster children, they don’t have the best of lives and that is why they land in the care of others. If he trusts you and you break his heart, it’s hard to come back from that for him.”

“Gabe feels bad, Tad not so much.” Walter turned to where Gabe was watching his baby brother sleep. “Think he will come around eventually?”

“He will,” Tony sighed. “It may take time or another health crisis, which with Gianna and Ethan will be inevitable.”

“Dad,” Gabe called out in a panic. “His teeth are chattering in his sleep.”

“Nathan,” Tony picked up his little boy. “Buddy? Can you wake up for daddy?”

“Hi daddy,” the little boy yawned. “I was having the best dream.”

“What was it?” Tony kissed the little guy’s forehead. 

“I was playing in the snow with bunny and Mickey came to play.” Nathan sighed.

“Dad,” Tad handed his father the ear thermometer. “Here you go.”

“Smart thinking,” Tony nodded. “Little low, but not bad. Let’s warm him up.”

“You should go help grandpa,” Nathan said softly as he wiggled down. “He’s in troubles.”

“What?” Tony jumped up to follow his little man. “Get Grace,” Tony yelled as he slid to the floor beside Jethro. “Okay, it’s okay, Gibbs. Gianna, you timing this, baby?”

“Yes, daddy.” The little girl’s voice shook as she answered, her eyes set on the clock on the wall.

“Don’t hold him down, move those chairs. I need to get his coat off of him. Someone keep an eye on Jackson, please.” Tony barked.

“Don’t worry about me,” Jackson yelled. “He’s not had one of these in a very long time, what happened?”

“I have my bag,” Grace made her way to Jethro’s side. “It’s over, let’s get him on his side. Sweetie, how long was it?”

“Two minutes, twelve seconds. He was already on the floor when we got in here.” Gianna commented. “Uncle Brad says to count on that being an extra minute at the least.”

“He’s going to be okay,” Tony reassured. “Someone take Nathan potty for me, please. Nathan, you go potty. When you are done, I want you to come back because you are going to help me take care of grandpa.”

“I can do it,” heading towards the bathroom off the kitchen, the little boy was relieved when Mitch showed up to give him a hand. “Thank you for helping me.”

“That is what friends are for,” Mitch whispered. “I have seizures too, he’s okay. He’s going to be sleepy, I bet you are going to get to snuggle with him while he sleeps it off. That’s the most important job that you can ever have.”

“Honest Engine?” Nathan’s eyes were so wide, he wanted to hurry to help.

“Dad,” Tony called softly. “It’s okay, you’re fine. It was a bigger one, but it’s okay. Just take it easy, we’ll get you to bed to sleep it off.”

“Kids?” Jethro slurred. “Okay?”

“Everyone is just fine,” Tony reassured. “Nathan could feel something was wrong, he’s how we found you. Now, you relax.”

“Dad,” Gianna came into the kitchen with Jethro’s pill box. “He’s taking his medicine, so that wasn’t what happened.”

“He’s running a fever,” Grace commented softly. “That’s probably out answer right there. We’re going to need to keep Nathan and Gianna away.”

“I have a mask,” the young lady ran to her room to get two masks. “Nathan, grandpa has the ickies so we have to wear a mask.”

“Okay,” there was not a moment of hesitation as he donned the protective gear. “I have a very important job to do.”

“Henry?” Jackson turned to his friend. “You okay?”

“That’s the way it should be for me and my girl,” the elder man pointed to where Tony was helping Gibbs to sit up. “That bond, that unshakable bond. Tony was concerned about everyone as he focused on Jethro. How did things go so wrong with my daughter?”

“I don’t know, my friend.” Jackson sighed. “Let’s go turn down LeRoy’s bed. We’re not going to solve your daughter issues today, but we can take care of my son and think on them.”

“Your family,” Walter said softly as he kneeled beside Jethro to help. “Your family is amazing, Gunny. I have never seen love, like I have witnessed today.”

“They love with all their hearts,” Grace added. “They are an amazing group.”


	5. Chapter 5

“Hey buddy!” Tony smiled as he walked into Jethro’s bedroom. “Whatcha doing?”

“Telling grandpa a story from my book, he needs to be quiet. Aunt Grace said that he needs to keep his hot ass in the bed and rest. I don’t think she meant to say a bad word, but it just slipped out on her.” Nathan smiled as he relayed the conversation. “He could use a drink, I can’t reach the sink to get him some water.”

“I will give you a hand,” Tony winked as he walked away chuckling.

“Listen up, Grandpa. Daddy is going to bring you water, you don’t have no choices, it goes down through the teeth and over the gums, look out tummy here it comes! Got it?”

“I got it,” Jethro smiled. “What time is it?”

“It’s Three, four, one.” Nathan repeated the numbers on the clock. “Does your tummy need food?”

“Here’s water,” Tony helped Gibbs sit up and drink. “Your dad is in the kitchen making you some eggs, toast and tea.”

“Where’s everyone else?” Jethro looked towards the door, confused when he found the hallway dark.

“Sleeping, it’s almost four in the morning. Nathan wouldn’t go to bed, he needed to help you. I’ll make sure he gets some rest in a little bit.” Tony watched as Gibbs gave Nathan a worried look. “He’s fine, Gibbs.”

“Can he sit up?” Jackson asked softly as he walked into the bedroom with a tray. “You need some food, Leroy.”

“I need a potty! Quick! This one sneaked up on me!” Throwing his arms up, Nathan waited for Tony to pick him up and run him to the closest bathroom.

“That kid loves you so much,” Jackson whispered as he set the tray on his son’s lap. “Let’s get some food in you, then you’re going to hit the head. After that, we are all going to get some sleep.” Jackson placed his hand on Jethro’s. “Slow down, nobody is going anywhere, son. We’re here for you. There is a raging snow storm out there, we can sleep the day away tomorrow if we want. Just take it easy.”

Standing in the hallway, Henry listened to the interaction between the three men and the little boy. His heart hurt, he desired a similar relationship with his daughter. His friend was correct, the relationship between father and daughter, he had created and catered to a spoiled brat.

“Henry,” Grace called softly as she tip toed out of Gianna’s room to check on her patient. “Everything okay”

“Did I do that to him? Getting him upset and stuff?” Pointing towards the bedroom, Henry’s face was filled with anguish.

“No, his seizures are an ongoing issue. He’s run down, they have been on the go since Nathan’s Nest started becoming a reality. Both Tony and Jethro are exhausted, I think this snow storm may be just what they needed. We’ll take care of them both for a couple days, let them recharge. Now, you go back to bed, I am going to go check on my patient and do the same. We’ll meet in the kitchen at the first pitter pat of smaller feet and take care of the kids while they get some rest.”

“Tony has been up all night with him, Nathan and Jackson too.” Henry whispered. “They can’t keep that up.”

“They won’t,” Grace smiled. “They are going to be settling in with him. Jackson will crawl in on one side, Tony will ease Jethro to the middle and Nathan will snuggle in right beside them. They are a close family, Jethro’s big on not leaving anyone behind and he passed that down to his family.”

“Ooh rah,” Henry whispered. “The men and I will take care of things around the house, you take care of them. It’s the least we can do.”

Morning came quietly in the DiNozzo household. True to his word, Henry and his friends made their way outside to shovel off the patio, plow the driveway and put down salt. By the time they were finished, the kids had made their way into the kitchen where Grace was working on breakfast.

“Dad is still sleeping?” Tad rubbed at his eyes. “Was it a late night?”

“It was,” Grace smiled. “They haven’t been to sleep that long. I think we’ll let them sleep in.”

“Grandpa slept a long time yesterday,” Gianna gave a smile. “Matthew, do you think you could come help me with something?”

“Sure, little lady.” Matt followed the young girl down the hallway. “You want the wheelchair out of there?”

“Please,” Gianna waited and watched. “I know my grandpa, he’s awake. He’s going to need to hit the head and then he will want coffee. He’s going to say he’s not getting in the chair, you let me handle that part. I just need muscles to help me get him into it the lift.”

“Lift,” Matthew took noticed of the track on the ceiling in the bedroom, hallway and living space. “That thing goes through your whole house, little Miss.”

“It does,” Gianna smiled. “Came in handy for me a lot of the time, dad just had to buy a smaller harness for it.”

“Hey baby girl,” Gibbs smiled when he granddaughter came quietly into the room. Pulling the harness over to her grandpa, she smiled as he helped her get him hooked up. “Just need a hand up,” Jethro put his arms out to Matt. Once up, he gave a nod to his granddaughter, smiling in relief as she handed him the controller. Fifteen minutes later, Jethro came out looking much better than he had gone in. “I’m not getting into that chair.”

“Yes, you are.” Gianna took the controller from his hand. “You’re not strong enough yet to be sitting and standing, sitting and standing. You will get in the chair or I wake up dad, Nathan and Grandpa Jack.”

“You don’t play fair,” Gibbs grumbled.

“Learned it from you,” Gianna teased. “When I was so sick and could barely sit up, what did you do when I tried to show you I was okay?”

“Told you that you don’t have to pretend, family loves you no matter what.” Gibbs sighed. “You win.”

“Grace is making you scrambled eggs, some toast with that freezer jam that you helped me make and Shelby is helping her wash up some fruit. The boys have your coffee poured, your juice ready and everyone else is eating now and are about to start working chores. It’s just going to be me and you, our special time just like when I am sick.” Gianna winked at Matt. “I did ask Matt to join us since his breakfasts got interrupted by helping me. You can trust him, he’s a pretty cool guy.”

Gianna took care of her grandpa while the boys and Shelby worked with the men to get the chores done around the house. By the time Tony and Nathan surfaced, the floors were scrubbed, the dishes were done, the bathrooms were spic and span, the toys were picked up and the kids were watching a movie with the men to keep quiet.

“Where’s your grandpa?” Tony asked as he looked around.

“Grandpa Jack took him into your bathroom to help him get shaved and cleaned up a little bit. We didn’t want to wake you, it was a long night.” Gianna spoke up. “Lunch is in about forty-five minutes, we made pizza dough.”

“Nathan needs something now,” Tony snuggled his little guy close. “Let’s get a snack while we wait for the pizza.”

“Dad, could I have a word with you?” Gianna pulled her father into the kitchen. “Grandpa’s taking it hard this time around. Think it’s because there are more people here this time?”

“Probably,” Tony sighed. “He’s got to take it easy for a little bit; we’ll get him into the gym tomorrow to do some therapy.”

“He should be okay to get up and start walking around a little bit,” Gianna sighed. “Shouldn’t he?”

“Guys! I’m going to starve to death. My new liver needs food to grow, ‘member?” Nathan interrupted. 

“Your grandpa will try to push it; let’s let him do what he can for now. He does not like to feel helpless or like he is dependent on anyone.” Tony explained. “He’s Gibbs, we have to let him be Gibbs.”

“Grandpa?” Nathan wiggled up on Jethro’s lap. “My tummy is very hungry and nobody is feeding it.”

“Let’s go see what we can do about that,” Gibbs pushed the joystick on his wheelchair. “Why aren’t they feeding it?”

“Cuz they want to talk, talk, talk.” Nathan sighed. “You is a man of a little talk and food!”

“They are all talk and no action,” Gibbs kissed Nathan’s forehead. “Do you want some juice and a muffin until the pizza is ready?”

“Yes please,” the little boy licked his lip. “We got nanas?”

“No,” Gibbs sighed then smiled, he knew what was going to happen as the words left his mouth.

“We have nooooooooo nanas, we have no nanas this day! We got spring beans and Unjins and cabby washes and stallions, but we go no nanas today!” The little boy’s voice echoed through the living room and kitchen, he loved that song and never missed the chance to sing it when the time was right.

“Where did he learn that song?” Henry laughed as he listened. “That preschool of yours?”

“He loves to sing,” Tad giggled. “Watch this.” Marching into the kitchen, Tad gave a big smile, took a deep breath and started. “Jeremiah was a bullfrog!”

“He was a dood friend of mine!” Nathan giggled. “Never understood a stinking word he said but he loved to cry and whine.”

“Singing joy to the world,” Tad and Gabe belted out in unison. “All the boys and girls.”

“Joy to the fishies in the blue blue sea.” Nathan slipped of Jethro’s lap to stand by his brothers. “Joy to you and me.”

“If I were the king of the world,” Tony picked up where the boys had paused. “I’d tell you what I’d do.”

“I’d throw away the cars, the bras and the world and whisper sweet nothings to you.” Tad belted out loudly. “Bring it home, Nathan!”

“Joy to the world,” Nathan started dancing the best dance moves his brothers had taught him. “All the boys and girls. Joy to the fishies in the blue blue sea… somebody needs to feed meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

“That was great,” Gibbs applauded. “I have your muffin, juice and apple sauce if you are ready.”

“Yes! Singing works up a pretty fierce hunger,” the little boy wiggled back into his grandpa’s lap. “I want to sit here to eat! It’s my favorite place in the world.”

“Even if you are stuck in that chair for a day,” Tony leaned in to whisper in Jethro’s ear. “Never underestimate how treasured you are by this family.”

“Fee Oh my! Throw my thumb! I smell a muffin for my tum-tum.” Nathan burst into giggles as he took a bite. “You want some?” The little boy looked over his shoulder to his grandpa, he would do anything in the world for him.

“I’ll take a little nibble,” Jethro leaned down to take a tiny bite, his heart about to burst as a look of pure joy and pride danced in the little guy’s eyes. “That was the best muffin that I have ever had, I could take the love.”

“I gave it a kiss,” Nathan mumbled. “The love is the secret part.”

“Well, it’s the best part.” Gibbs kissed Nathan’s head as he spoke. “You are one very cool kid.”

“I’m all done,” with his hands in the air, Nathan waited for Tony to come wipe him down with a wet paper towel. “This guy is so predictable.” Nathan giggled. “I have to go check on my Bunny. He’s still in bed.”

“Is he okay?” Gibbs placed Nathan on the floor. “Was he just tired?”

“No, he’s got a high grain bunny ache; he’s not used to so many people at our house. It hit him pretty hard.” Hurrying down the hallway, Nathan scaled the side of Jethro’s bed to check on his best friend. “Feeling any better? I didn’t think so.”

“How’s he doing?” Grandpa Jethro drove his wheelchair into the bedroom. “Need any help with him?”

“It’s pretty touch and yo-yo. I don’t know what to do? He was fine last night, he woke up this way. I think he needs a doctor.” Nathan looked rather worried. 

“Well,” Gibbs took his cellphone from the nightstand. “I know where there is a very good one, she took care of me just yesterday. “Let’s see what we can do about getting her to make a bedroom call.”

“Popeye?” Grace answered her phone with a great deal of concern to her voice as she started down the hallway. “What’s wrong?”

“Nathan’s bunny needs the best doctor in the world,” Gibbs explained. “He’s got a bad case of High Grain Bunny Ache.”

“I see,” Grace answered as she walked into the bedroom. “How is he?”

“It’s pretty touch and yo-yo right now.” Nathan gently played with Bunny’s ear. “He’s my other best friend, can you do anything to save him?”

“What kind of bandaids do you have around here?” Grace questioned so seriously. “We need the fancy kind, not the plain ones.”

“We got Spiderman, SpongeBob and Hello Kitty.” Nathan wiggled down. “What do I get?”

“1 Hello Kitty and 2 Spongebob should be a good start.” Grace gently poked at bunny. “He’s pretty sick, but I think we can fix Bunny right up.”

“Daddddddddddddddddddy!” Nathan ran out the door only to bump into Tony. “Hi Daddy!”

“Hi Baby, what do you need?” Tony had been listening the entire time. “Can I help you with Bunny?”

“I need Band-Aids for Bunny. One Hello Kitty and Two SpongeBob.” Hugging Tony’s legs, Nathan hurried back into the bedroom. “They are on the way. What’s next?”

“Does Bunny have a favorite song?” Grace took the Band-Aids from Tony and placed them gently on Bunny before tucking him under the covers.

“Dad, I am going to need a drink to keep my whistle wet.” Standing in the middle of the bed, Nathan wiggled about a little bit to get his tempo.

Gibbs, Grace and Tony all settled in for the lullaby that Nathan was about to sing to bunny. They watched as he took a drink then a deep breath.

“Wop bop a loo bop a lop bom bom!

Tutti frutti, oh rutti  
Tutti frutti, oh rutti  
Tutti frutti, oh rutti  
Tutti frutti, oh rutti  
Tutti frutti, oh rutti  
Wop bop a loo bop a lop ba ba!

I got a bunny that’s a dude! He know what not to do!”

“Where you’d hear Little Richard music?” Tony caught the little boy mid bounce.

“Grandpa Jack likes to dance to it!”

“Always knew there was a rock star under that flannel,” Henry teased. “You are one lucky Son of a bi…..”

“That’ s a dollar!” Gabe held out his hand. “Pay up!”

“Now waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaait a minute,” Tad broke out into song.

“You make me want to shout!” Nathan hopped down and ran towards his brother. “Throw my hands up and shout!”

“Are we raising kids or a rock band?” Tony laughed.

“Rock band!” The boys cried out in unison.

“At least they aren’t fighting with each other if they are singing.” Gianna snickered. 

“Kick my heels up and shout!” Nathan yelled. “Say you will!”


	6. Chapter 6

“You ready?” Tony questioned his youngest. “I’m going to need your help when we go look at this place. We have to make sure it is a good place for people like Henry, Walter, Matt and Mitch to live.”

“How do I help?” Nathan hugged his bunny close. “I’m just a little dude.”

“Are you kidding me? You are going to be able to see things down there that I can’t see up here. You look for lots of bugs, cracks in the walls or floors. Anything that looks really, really icky; if it looks like it’s danger you tell me!” Tony watched as a smile spread across Nathan’s face.

“I’m the man for the job!” Hurrying down the hallway, the little boy carefully placed his bunny on his bed and went to his toy box. He was going to need things if he was going to do this job right. “Mitch! I need help!”

“What’s wrong little buddy?” Mitch hurried into the bedroom only to find Nathan struggling to put on his Bob the Builder coveralls. “You have great work clothes, do these come in my size?”

“I think they are only for us little guys,” Nathan sighed with relief when his friend helped him into the costume. “I need my hard hat!” Nathan giggled when his friend put it on his head. “You’re a pal!”

“No, you’re a pal!” Mitch snickered. “Here’s your bunny, think he needs his rain coat?”

“Yeah, he could get dirty at work.” Nathan waited patiently as his best friend was dressed. “That’s the ticket! Now, we are ready to work until we drop!” Hurrying down the hallway, Nathan went searching for his dad and grandpa. “I’m ready!”

“Look at you!” Tony laughed. “Where did you get that outfit?”

“Grandpa got it! I got tools just like he got tools. Bunny is ready to go,” Nathan looked around. “Are they going?”

“No,” Tony picked up the little guy. “They are going to stay here; there is other work to be done. I didn’t they were as qualified as you are to go on this job.” Tony’s heart felt so full as he watched Nathan’s eyes grow with wonder. “You are just the right man for this job. You’ve been your grandpa’s right had for so long, I think you have an eye for these things.”

“Grandpa,” Nathan waved as he saw Gibbs enter the kitchen. “I’m the right man for the job.”

“I knew it!” Gibbs winked. “I could tell just by looking at that tool belt.”

“Okay listen up,” Tony called the other children into the kitchen. “I am taking Nathan with us. The four of you oversee keeping the house in order, do not let Grace, Mitch, Walter, Matt or Henry get out of line. You know the rules, I expect them to be followed. “

“Yes, Sir.” Gianna saluted her father.

The location of the abandoned apartment complex took no more than fifteen minutes to get to from the house. Tony helped Jethro out of the SUV and into the wheelchair, they had fought earlier about the necessity, but Gibbs still found himself planted where he was safe with Nathan on his lap.

“This is the best,” Nathan giggled. “I see a crack!” Nathan pointed to a crack in the sidewalk. “That’s danger!”

“Sidewalks need busted up and redone,” Tony sighed. “Parking lot needs a lot of work. The exterior isn’t too bad, the landscaping needs some love. Jack, what do you think about the outside of that building?”

“Going to need to widen the doorway going in,” Jackson sighed. “Should install automatic doors so that anyone is a wheelchair doesn’t get caught in the door. Leroy, what do you see from your perspective?”

“That’s the main reason I wanted him in the chair, that world looks different and if anyone is going to see it, it will be dad.” Tony didn’t even realize what he said, but Jethro’s heart felt like it was about to explode with love.

“The parking lot needs redone, too many issues that could trip someone or get a chair stuck. I agree with the doors needing redone. There should be a sidewalk from the building to the store. I would widen it enough to get two chairs down it.”

“Coming and going lanes,” Tony nodded. “Let’s go in,” stepping inside, the men looked around.

“Daddy,” Nathan looked all over like the little expert that he is. “That crack in the floor is from there to there. It’s so so big.”

“You’re right,” Tony nodded. “How about you start at this wall and walk as far as you can to check for cracks for me down low. Here is some sidewalk chalk, you put a line on it for me.”

“Grandpa, miss me!” Nathan giggled as he slid off Jethro’s lap, adjusted his hard hat and pulled the flashlight from his tool belt. Switching it on, he was on a mission with chalk in hand.

“He’s marking a lot of things,” Gibbs pointed to where Nathan was making another line. “The floor has a slope to it too,” Jethro looked around before starting to maneuver the wheelchair. “You will have a problem if anyone is on wheels over here, it’s going to send backwards into a shelf or another person.”

“This is why, I wanted your butt in this chair,” Tony said softly. “You look at things differently on wheels, see things differently.”

“You keep telling me that,” Gibbs growled. “You’re right though. What’s wrong with Nathan?” Gibbs looked to where he grandson was standing clutching his bunny tight. “What’s wrong, buddy?”

“That’s danger,” Nathan pointed about five feet ahead where wires were on the floor. “You don’t touch a wire evers!”

“You’re right,” Tony smiled. “Where’d you learn that at?”

“School,” Nathan giggled. “It’s part of safety class!”

“Well, I think I need to give your teacher a raise,” picking up his son, Tony hoisted the little guy onto his hip. “She taught you something very important.”

“That’s danger,” Nathan pointed to more wires. “The floor is wibbly wobbly, I was going so fast over there.”

Wheeling to where Nathan pointed, Jethro let go of the wheels of his chair and sighed when it rolled backwards. “He found another wibbly wobbly spot for sure!”

“So we have to jack hammer this floor,” Tony sighed. “Okay, let’s head over the apartments and see what’s wrong with them. Good thing we haven’t signed any paperwork yet. Dad, do you think you could give Marty a call to come give us estimates on what it’s going to take to do the floor in here, the parking lot and sidewalks?” Turning to Gibbs, Tony noticed an odd look on his face. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Gibbs nodded. “It’s just.. Never mind. I’ll make the phone call while you are looking at the first apartment.”

“I’m staying with grandpa!” Nathan wiggled down and ran to his best buddy. “Up, please.” The little man giggled with joy as Jethro lifted him up, kissed his head and placed him on his lap. “You got troubles?”

“Nope,” Gibbs winked. “Your dad, he just touched my heart and made it that good kind of wobbly.”

“He does that sometimes,” Nathan beamed as he looked around the parking lot. “This is a place for big people?”

“Yep,” looking down at his grandson, he could see the wheels turning. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s not no place to sit down,” Nathan pointed. 

“You’re right,” wheeling closer to the sidewalk, Gibbs noted several spots that benches could be installed. “Let’s make a phone call.”

“Well?” Tony sighed as he came out. “What’d you find out?”

“He’s on his way,” Gibbs shrugged. “Once I told him what it was for, he hopped right in the truck and started driving. He served with me, Tony. He’s a good man, he’ll be fair.”

“Wasn’t worried about that,” Tony looked around. “The apartments are going to need new carpet and a paint job. We’re going to have to get the electricity on to see the appliances work. I’d like to see a few changes. I’d like to see all their patios jack hammered up and redone too. They are cracked and dangerous.”

“Nathan thinks we need some benches,” Gibbs pointed in front of the building that would be the store. “Plenty of room over there for that. I was looking at this building, do you have keys to get in there?”

“I do,” Tony unlocked the door that appeared to be to an office. “Wow, this isn’t bad. It’s big.”

“Would make a great office to see patients in,” Gibbs said softly. “Waiting area, doctor’s office.” 

“What’s this,” Jackson pointed to another door. Opening it, they were amazed to find an office that contained all the paperwork on every tenant that had occupied the other apartments as well as documentation on all the appliances, maintenance and the rent roster.

“Wow, someone loved their job,” Tony commented. “Wonder if we could find her? I would consider putting her back into this position with the records that she was keeping.”

“Employee files are over here,” Jackson pointed to an open drawer. “We could make some phone calls. The maintenance man is here too.”

“What’s a Man tents man?” Nathan questioned.

“Maintenance,” Tony smiled at his little fella. “It’s the man that fixes things up around here and keeps the grass cut and snow plowed.”

“That’s a big job,” Nathan looked around. “I could help! I got my tools! Whoa! Look in there!”

“It’s an office,” Tony stepped inside. “Someone had a child. Looks like they brought the little one to work. It looks like… yes, there is an apartment that goes with this office. That’s interesting, we need to read those personnel files, see what we can find out.”

“Marty just pulled in,” Tony pointed to the parking lot. “Let’s go talk to him, tell him what we are thinking and get an estimate from him.”

Taking the tour, Marty took pictures, notes, and measurements. “This is a big job, guys. What made you decide to do this?”

“Right now, we have four homeless veterans staying in our home. The kids befriended them, that storm was coming through and we couldn’t just leave them out in the cold.” Tony explained.

“So you have four apartments rented,” Marty pointed to the villa type apartments that were spread across the land. “Was talking to a buddy, he took on a job restoring homes for Vets to move into. There is grant money for each home to be restored. What if they do not have to be free standing houses, what if the way this is set up, would qualify. You could get a sum of money per veteran to spend on that unit.”

“I need to do some checking,” Tony sighed. “Maybe if we could get all the units claimed, we could get the money we need to do what is needed from the porch to the back wall.”

“Sounds like a job for Grace,” Gibbs rubbed at his forehead. “I’m going to go get in the van.”

“Me too!” Nathan wiggled down from his grandpa’s lap, moved behind the wheelchair and started to push with all his might, relieved when he dad started to help.

“Get me some numbers,” Tony called out to Marty. “I’m going to get these guys home and fed. Come by the house for dinner, meet the guys. I think you’ll be touched by their stories.”

Tony steadied Gibbs and he walked into the house. The busy morning had exhausted him, but his frustration with the chair was enough to have Tony following close behind.

“What happened in here?” Jethro looked around the kitchen, his eyes taking in the fact that there was flour and powdered sugar all over, just about every surface.

“Is that a body outline?” Tony pointed to the floor by the sliding glass door.

“Shelby sized,” Gibbs sighed. “There’s another one over there, adult sized, I hope they used washable markers.”

“What the hell,” Jackson looked at the red handprints on the wall. “Is that supposed to be blood?”

“The ketchup variety,” Gibbs snickered. “Inventive.”

“Sit down,” Gianna’s voice carried through the house. “What in the world were you guys thinking?”

“Gianna,” Henry’s voice called softly. “We’re sorry, we’ll clean it up.”

“Clean it up?” Gianna shouted. “We can’t clean that mess up without that machine from grandpa’s shop and do not even think about going in there and borrowing anything.”

“Could you let us out of the handcuffs?” Matt questioned. “We can work on it, if you’ll uncuff you.”

“Heck no,” the preteen shook her head. “I go in the gym to use the treadmill, I come out and you have destroyed the house. I can’t let you go. “

“These the trouble makers?” Vance’s voice carried as Tony heard the front door close.

“Yes, sir.” Gianna sighed. “They wrecked the entire house in the hour I was in the gym with Aunt Grace.”

“Where’s Nemo?” Vance looked around for the beloved family pet. “Thought you said he was a casualty.”

“He’s over there,” pointing towards the corner, the young woman sighed. “Took Aunt Grace and Uncle Jimmy forty minutes to get the bubble bath off of him, he’s traumatized.”

“He smelled like dog farts,” Gabe shouted.

“Don’t speak, don’t even speak.” Gianna shook her head. “You bathed the dog in bubble bath, you tattooed Shelby’s face with markers, you created a crime scene in the kitchen and you purchased a coffin off the internet.”

“Abbytales said they are comfortable and I want a new bed.” Tad piped up. “She’s got two, I just want one.”

“You don’t need any, you have a bed, bonehead.” Gianna took a step forward. “Uncle Leon, I think we need to start the trial. These men are not going to listen to a darn thing I say, it’s time to throw the book at them.”

“Men, what do you have to say for yourself?” Vance walked past where Gianna had handcuffed Mitch, Henry, Matt and Walter before turning to put his evil eye on Gabe and Tad, the boy’s arms were tired to a chair with Shelby’s hair ribbons. 

“Guilty sir,” Henry spoke up for the group. “We got caught up in the game, we didn’t even realize how much of a mess they made until we heard Gianna gasp.”

“They,” Tad called out. “You were the ones threw the eggs at Nemo. Trying to bomb a moving target, he’s just a baby.”

“Yeah,” Gabe spat. “It took a lot of bubble bath to get the egg off, but then we couldn’t get the bubble bath off.”

“Sir,” Tad looked at Vance. “We’re being railroaded here. We’re kids, they are the adults, we tried to be good, but they were a very bad influence.”

“Wait,” Mitch shook his head. “It was your idea to play special agents. You had us create the crime scene and then came to investigate it.”

“And you were crazy enough to fall for that?” Gianna spoke up. “What in the world were you thinking smearing ketchup on the wall?”

“We was going to do real blood but nobody wanted to bleed.” Matt sighed. “Wow, that sounded terrible.”

“Men, I am going to undo the cuffs, you are going to take those brooms, dustpans and garbage cans and start on the kitchen. Gabriel and Thaddeus, I want you to go apologize to Nemo for starting all of this. You will take your dad to the computer where you placed your order so he can cancel it. After that, I want you to get busy helping clean everything up. After the kitchen is spotless, I will do an inspection. At that time, your father will hand down the sentencing for your crime. Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir.” The boys sighed.

“That casket had a pillow to it that is supposed to be like sleeping on a cloud.” Tad shook his head. “It’s beautiful craftmanship, it’s a real shame that we have to cancel it. I got a good deal on it too.”

“Show me,” Tony looked at the website, opened up the account and was relieved to find a feature that allowed him to cancel the order without any issues. “What’s this other order?”

“Well, we wanted to get Abbytales a really nice gift for her birthday.” Gabe was so proud of himself.

“You ordered her a bat?” Tony gasped. “Boys, you don’t order rodents for gifts.”

“Take that back!” Gabe growled. “It’s not a rodent it’s a beautiful creature that has special talents that any loving Goth would want.”

“Any other surprises I should know about?” Tony sighed as he clicked to cancel the bat. “Boys?”

“No!” The answer was too quick, the look of pure mischief radiated from the boys.

“What don’t I know about?” Tony grabbed the boys by the collars and pulled them back to him. “What did you do?”

“Well, this one you are going to love!” Gabe giggled. “Remember when you said that you hadn’t been on a date in years and you really would like to spend some time in the arms of a lady that knows how to treat a man right?”

“I never said that,” Tony argued. 

“Well you meant to say it,” Tad beamed. “We got you a St. Bernard!”

“Wait what?” Gibbs struggled to contain a chuckle.

“We looked for a woman, but she was so expensive and we had to wait for her to come from Thailand, she didn’t speak English, we tried to talk to her but she didn’t know a word we were saying.” Tad explained. “So we asked Grandpa Ducky what the best companion for a lonely guy is and he said a dog, the bigger the better.”

“So we ordered the biggest dog we could find on the petfinder website.” Gabe smiled. “She’ll be here tomorrow.”

“No he won’t,” Tony gasped. “Boys, I don’t need a woman and I don’t need a big dog.”

“I think you do,” Tad chided. “You’ve been pretty grouchy lately, the company of a good woman would do you some good. Her name is Irene, she’s two and loves to kiss.”

“Gibbs,” Tony gasped. “Talk to them.”

“They are your boys,” Jethro laughed as he took Nathan by the hand. “We’re going to go into the apartment, see if there are any snacks in there and take a nap.”

“Jethro,” Tony begged. “You’ve got to help me here.”

“Run for your life,” Tad pushed Gabe towards the door.

“I am, he’s going to be so surprised when the monkey shows up next week.” Gabe laughed as they ran. “Did you remember to order it diapers?”

“Yep.”

“I leave four children in the care of four grown men and one woman,” Tony rubbed at his forehead. “They destroyed the house, bought a coffin, bat, St. Bernard and a Monkey in the four hours we were gone. How’s that possible.”

“You don’t know the half of it, daddy.” Shelby crawled on her father’s lap and gave him a hug. “They did lots of damage to your credit card.”

“How’d they even get it?” Tony looked at his daughter.

“They picked your pocket,” the little girl giggled. “They’ve been practicing it for weeks, you just never noticed.”

“I need a drink” Tony groaned.

“They ordered you the good stuff,” Shelby snickered. “It’s supposed to be here tomorrow. Daddy? I was the bad guy, Tad said I killed them with my charming personality and good looks, because I am a Nozzo.”


	7. Chapter 7

“Mr. DiNozzo, I am Monica from the Alexandria Animal Shelter, I am here to deliver the newest member of your family, Irene.” Monica handed Tony the leash and started to walk away.

 

“Monica, is it? Listen, there has been a bit of a mistake. You see, my boys, well, they ordered Irene while I was gone on an errand for the day. She’s a beautiful dog, but we already have a Chihuahua.” Tony, in his effort to express his point, let go of the leash without thinking.

 

“Mr. DiNozzo, you don’t understand, Irene is scheduled to be put down tomorrow. Due to her size, nobody has wanted her. People, in his area, want smaller dogs. Irene is just a lot of love under all that fluff, I do not want to see her killed because she’s just a big dog.” Monica sighed. “Besides, I think she’s made a friend.”

 

“What?” Tony turned to check out what the dog was doing. Sitting on the floor, next to Nathan, was Irene. Her head as in his tiny lap, listening as he pointed out things around the room.

 

“That’s grandpa’s favorite chair,” Nathan was telling Irene. “You don’t sit in it unless he says come up here, my lap is lonely for you.” Standing up, the little boy giggled when Irene started to follow him. “Let me show you the important stuff. This is the back door, that is our yard. You go potty out there! Got it? I thought so. Come on! This way to my room.”

 

“Nathan,” Tony called after his little guy, stopping when Gibbs appeared from a doorway where he had been watching. 

 

“You take that dog away, you’ll break his heart. That’s the happiest he’s been in months.” Gibbs listened to the giggles coming from the bedroom. Making his way down the hallway, he couldn’t hide the smile as he watched Irene put every toy that Nathan tried to show her back in his toybox. “Smart dog, Tony.”

 

“How am I going to play if you keep putting my stuff away,” Nathan laughed. “You’re funny, Lucy.”

 

“Nathan, her name is Irene.” Gibbs said softly. “She’s beautiful.”

 

“She likes Lucy better.” Nathan ran across the room and yelled to the dog. “Irene come here!” The dog laid down, her eyes trained on her new best friend. “See, she hates it. Come on, Lucy! Let’s go outside.”

 

“What the heck,” Tony watched in disbelief as the dog responded to her new name and took off after Nathan.

 

“Guess that he speaks dog!” Gibbs laughed as he made his way down the hallway to the kitchen. “Matt, thanks for helping him.” Gibbs pointed to where Matt was placing boots on his little buddy’s feet and as Henry came with his coat. 

 

“Jethro, that is one mighty fine dog, the little fella has there.” Henry smiled. “She’s gentle as a butterfly, she’s been with kids. I dare say if you find out her background, she probably was some little fella’s dog.”

 

“She was,” Monica stepped into the kitchen from where she had waiting in the living room. “That was the other problem, she didn’t seem to bond with anyone. Her original owner was a five-year-old little boy, he was killed in a car accident along with his parents. She grieved for him so hard, that is as happy as I have seen her since she came to the shelter. Please, sir. Please let her stay.”

 

“Don’t worry!” Nathan called out as he pushed the door to the porch open. “She’s here to stay, she’s got Nozzo written all over her!”

 

“Who told you to say that?” Tony laughed. “Confess!”

 

“Grandpa Jack!” Nathan giggled as he finally got the door open and set out with his new friend to have some fun. 

 

“Jackson,” Tony snickered. “You’re not helping my cause here.”

 

“When have you seen him smile that big since Tad and Gabe started picking on him?” Jack said softly. “Those boys just make it so hard on him, he needs Lucy, Tony.”

 

“You’re right,” Tony sighed. “I had hoped, the boys would calm down, be a bit more tolerant. That’s not happening and when he’s home with them, he’s miserable. I have tried just about everything that I can think of.”

 

“You could ship him away to boarding school,” Tad suggested. “The kid is a nuisance.”

 

“You know what boys,” Tony took a deep breath. “I want you to go put on some clothes that you can get dirty. I think that it’s about time for you to be sentenced for all the mean things you do to your brother. I told you, I would figure out a punishment someday. Today, I have figured it out.”

 

“Dad!” The boys cried out only to be met by a stern look. “We’re going.” Marching off together, they went into the room to get changed. 

 

“What do you think he has planned?” Gabe questioned. “I’m worried.”

 

“Probably cleaning up dog poop or something,” Tad answered as he pulled on his clothes. “This is not going to be fun, but we have to do it. The faster we do it, the faster it is over. Just don’t give him no crap, that way he lets us off with the minimum sentence.”

 

“Come on, boys. Get in my vehicle, there is work to be done. Grandpa is packing you a lunch.” Tony pointed to where Gibbs was working at the counter. “Grandpa Jack is watching Nathan with Lucy. Matt, Henry, Walter and Mitch are coming with us.”

 

“This isn’t just picking up dog poop,” Gabe gulped. “This is going to be big work.”

 

“Put on these gloves,” Tony handed the boys each a set of work gloves. “You are going to work at cleaning this area of the yard. I want all the branches to be put in a pile; when you are done I will give you another assignment.”

 

“Daaaaaaaaad,” Tad groaned.

 

“Shut it, Tad.” Gabe picked up a branch and started dragging it to where he was to start a pile. “All this is because you can’t be nice to Nathan. He’s just a baby, you’re mean to him.”

 

“You are too,” Tad called back.

 

“I know,” Gabe sighed. “I do it so you don’t get mad at me, but I am not doing it again! He’s a nice guy.”

 

“Heard you want to be a marine,” Matt said as he grabbed a branch to help Gabe. “You know, in the Marine, we don’t leave anyone behind. We treat everyone right and we are leaders, not followers. I know you love your brother, but it is okay to be your own man. He might get mad, but when he’s tired of being alone because he is mad; he will change his tune.”

 

“Are you sure?” Gabe looked to Tad. “He’s my best friend.”

 

“I promise,” Matt winked. “You need to show him what a strong man you are by being your own man. Do you understand?”

 

“No,” Gabe looked genuinely confused, but his face showed he was very interested in what Matt had to say. “We better keep working! My dad is upset so we can’t really stop.”

 

“You’re right, I can talk and work. You know how sometimes your brother wants to do something and it just doesn’t feel right in your gut? That’s what I mean, you have to be brave enough to tell him no and do what your gut is telling you.” Matt winked down at Gabe, his heart filled with pride as the little boy’s face broke into a smile.

 

“Dad, why can’t you just hire someone to do this? You’ve got more money than Trump!” Tad called out, he was clearly not into the work.

 

“Zip it, Tad.” Gabe snapped. “Don’t be a brat, just do what dad wants us to do.” Gabe’s words stung, he could tell. Watching his brother closely, he sighed with relief when he started doing the work that his father had asked him to do.

 

“We’re done with this dad,” Gabe called out. “What’s next?”

 

“Well, I went through this office, there is nothing in there you can hurt yourself on so start putting everything you see on the floor into garbage bags. We’ll come in and carry them to the dumpster for you. Mitch is going to work with you, he’s missing Nathan so I thought maybe it would help for him to get to know you.” Tony watched as Mitch and Tad walked into the office area.

 

“Dad is this the place the Veterans are going to live?” Gabe looked around as he finally realized what they were working on.

 

“It is,” Tony smiled. “Would you like to see one of the apartments? They are all the same.”

 

“Yes, Sir!” Gabe pulled off his gloves, tucked them into his pocket took his father’s hand. “Wow, these are nice. Look at that! They won’t have to live under a bridge no more! Daddy, they don’t have no money how will they get beds and food?”

 

“Aunt Grace is working on getting them their benefits. I was thinking that maybe she could come work here helping them and other veterans that need therapy. That one building has a nice office that she could use. The office that Mitch and your brother are in is going to be the office for the person that takes over watching over everyone.” Tony watched as Gabe wandered around the empty apartment. “Can you think of anything it is missing besides furniture?”

“Just love,” Gabe smiled. “When it is all done, the love will be here. Dad, I want to see the office that you think should be for Aunt Grace!”

 

“Come on,” Tony stooped down to give his son a piggy back ride. “Dude, you are almost too big for this.”

 

“I’m a marine in a training,” Gabe laughed. “You’re a slacker! You should be able to carry a 100 lb pack on your back. You’re getting soft, DiNozzo.” Gabe giggled, he loved playing Marine with is dad.

 

“Sorry, Sir!” Tony barked with a smile on his face. “I will hit the gym, sir!”

 

“This is it?” Gabe pointed to the front door. “It’s nice, I want to work in here.”

 

“I will work with you, let’s get it cleaned up then we will ask her. What do you think?” Tony looked around. “Maybe we should paint it first.”

 

“We should make it look really pretty first.” Taking a look around, Gabe walked into the bathroom. “Dad, this needs work! Do you know how to do a bathroom? Gunnypa does, he’s really good at that and I can help him.”

 

“You’re right, he is. He needs to take it easy, buddy. Maybe we could get one of the other guys to help you out.” Tony looked around to take inventory of what needed done.

 

“NO! Well YES!” Gabe snickered. “What if Walter helped us, but I think Gunnypa really needs to be on the project, he’ll be safe with me. I promise, Marine’s take care of each other.”

 

“Okay,” Tony nodded. “We’ll bring him out here tomorrow. You two can get to work on the office and figure out what we need to order and do. I will bring you here tomorrow and then Monday we will get everything ordered while you are at school.”

 

“Dad,” Gabe turned to his father. “If I don’t do what Tad wants me to do, is he going to be mad at me? Matt said I need to be my own man. I want to be, but Tad is my best friend and I don’t want him mad at me.”

 

“Buddy, sometimes, you have to do the unpopular thing and risk it. Nathan is very sad living with us, he needs someone to love him and I Know you can do that.”

 

“Tony,” Grace rushed into the office. “We need you at home, bring the guys. Judge Wilbur’s apartment building is on the news. There’s been a bombing in New York, act of terrorism. It started at the end of her block and worked their way down blowing up buildings. Jackson’s trying to call her, but there is no answer on her cell phone. He’s beside himself.”

 

“I’ll get my brother and the men,” Gabe tore out of the office. “Lock up the office, we’ll meet you at the truck.”

 

“Here’s the keys to this one,” Tony handed them to Grace, “I need to lock up the other buildings really quick.”

 

“Tony, Nathan understands what is going on. He’s not said a word since he saw the television. Gianna tried to keep him away, but she’s his best friend.” Grace wiped at her tears as she hurried to lock the door.

 

“Nathan,” Tony ran into the living room. “Daddy is here, baby.” Scooping up his little boy, Tony sat on the floor, with Lucy snuggling close. “I’m right here, baby.”

 

“Grandpa?” Tad looked from Gibbs to the television. “How will we know if she’s in that?”

 

“I don’t know, buddy.” Jethro whispered as he watched Tad crawl on the chair next to where Jackson sat. Pulling Gabe close, Gibbs struggled to hold back the tears. 

 

“It was hard enough when it was the NCIS building,” Tony whispered. “We helped with the rescue; we were there to pray and watch. This hurts so much, I don’t know how to even process this.”

 

“You don’t,” Grace stepped behind Tony to place a hand on his shoulder. “You don’t do anything right now except hope and pray. For those babies of yours, for your dad and grandfather and for yourself, you have to keep a positive frame of mind.”

 

“What can we do to help?” Walter questioned from where he was sitting on the floor. “There has to be something that we can do.”

 

“Looks like the village after the bombing,” Mitch wiped at his tears. “So many children were hurt, bleeding. Little Sacha died in my arms, we did that to her and her family. War is no good, it’s no good ever.”

 

“Close your eyes,” Henry moved to sit behind Mitch. “Try to settle down, think about something else.”

 

“I don’t want to think about something else,” Mitch sobbed. “I want to cry for Sacha, I want to cry for her and not have anyone tell me to stop.”

 

Easing Tad off his lap, Jackson stood and walked over to Mitch. “Come sit by me,” Jackson pointed to the spot next to him. “You listen to me, Mitch. You cry for Sacha as long and as hard as you want. Never let anyone tell you that you don’t have to the right to mourn.”

 

“We were doing our job,” Matthew whispered through a veil of tears. “A job that really, really sucked at times.”

 

“Yes, it did.” Jethro sighed. “As many things as we did that were good, there were things we did to defend our country that didn’t feel good.”

 

“Just like being a cop,” Tony whispered. “How many times did we beg them to put down the gun or detonator? How many times did we walk away after taking down the bad guy, to save the innocent, wishing we could have saved them all?”

 

“Do you ever worry that God is going to punish you for what you did for your job?” Gianna looked around the room. 

 

“Honey, they were hired to do a job. That is what they were trained to do. If they had not done it, so many innocent people would have died. They are heroes, Gianna.” Grace sat next to her young friend to explain. 

 

“I worry about it,” Henry nodded. “The older I get, the more I wonder if my situation is what it is because God wants me to do some type of penance before he decides where I am spending eternity.”

 

“I gave it some thought,” Jackson mumbled. “Up there, flying with your hand on the trigger, no faces just land for miles and all you did was fire. You don’t realize what you did until the tally comes in.”

 

“Kids, why don’t you go play for a while.” Tony mumbled. “This is too much grown up talk, I don’t think you should listen to it anymore.”

 

“We have talked about it before,” Tad looked at his dad. “I asked my Sunday school teacher if you are going to hell, because you killed people when you were a Special Agent.”

 

“Sending us to our room,” Gianna looked her dad in the eye. “It’s not going to make the questions go away, this is helping me understand. I didn’t want to think that you never thought about the people you had to kill.”

 

“Do you ever wonder what happened to the people we helped?” Walter looked at the men. “What about the lives you saved working at NCIS? Do you ever wonder what happened to them?”

 

“She’s part of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra,” Gibbs smiled. “Listened to her play, it’s so beautiful. She can transport you places that you never imagined you could go with piano music.”

 

“Sandy Watson,” Tony smiled. “She’s doing what I dreamed of doing.”

 

“She’s doing what I always dreamed Kelly would be doing,” Gibbs sighed.

 

“Your grandpa helped a lot of kids,” Tony smiled. “Kept in tabs on them too. He made sure they grew up to have good lives.”

 

“You did too,” Gibbs looked at Tony. “Josh Cooper, I seem to remember you encouraged him to go follow his dream and go to Princeton. How old would Josh be now?”

 

“He’s twenty-nine,” Tony sighed. “Got married two years ago, he and his wife, Melissa just had a baby boy, named him Fredrick after Joshua’s dad.”

 

“How about Corporal Ernie Yost,” Gibbs watched Tony shift in his chair. “You paid for his burial, long before you did not have to worry about money. What did you give up paying for that?”

 

“My vacation fund,” Tony sighed. “He was a good man, he deserved some respect at the end of life.”

 

“Dad, what about you?” Gibbs watched his father’s confused look. “All those groceries you gave away so that a family didn’t go hungry. The back room that had a bed for that person that was down on their luck and needed a place to sleep until they could sort things out?”

 

“My Judge!” Nathan slid off Tony’s lap and ran to the television. “Daddy, that’s my Judge.”

 

“She’s not moving,” Gianna’s eyes filled with tears. “Daddy make her move.”

 

“She has to be alive, they wouldn’t show her if she wasn’t alive. Would they?” Jackson looked to his son. “LeRoy? Would they?” Unable to look away, Jackson ran his fingers gently through Nathan’s hair as the little boy watched to see his friend again.

 

“Daddy,” Nathan turned around, his eye lashes had huge tears on them. “Make her all better, daddy!” Sniffling hard, the sobs soon took over leaving the family feeling helpless as Lucy comforted her new best friend.


	8. Chapter 8

“Tad?” Judge Wilbur blinked hard to clear her vision. “What are you doing here, sweetie?”

 

“I didn’t want you to be by yourself when you woke up,” Tad whispered. “When I was in the hospital, I always felt okay because my dad or grandpa was there when I opened my eyes.”

 

“Where is your dad?” Margaret moved to look only to stop when the pain got to her.

 

“You should let the bed do the work,” Thaddeus grabbed the controller and started to raise the bed. “Let me know when it’s enough.”

 

“That’s good,” Margaret looked at the little boy’s face, it looked positively exhausted. “Where’s your family, sweetie?”

 

“Dad, grandpa and Grandpa Jack are where your apartment building used to be,” Tad wiped at his eyes. “Gianna, Gabe, Shelby, and Nathan are with Aunt Grace. Nathan was so upset, he made himself sick so they are at the hotel so he can take a nap. Henry, Matt, Mitch and Walter are with other retired military helping look for people in the debris. Uncle Leon is sending people to help and Uncle Cyril and Aunt Catherine are on their way because he wants to make sure you are getting the best of care.”

 

“You did all of this for me?” The judge was overwhelmed with emotion. Divorced after a short marriage, to a man that felt her place was at home, she had found herself alone, with trust issues. “Tad, are you ok?”

 

“Yes,” Tad whispered. “I … just…”

 

“What’s wrong?” Margaret took the young boy’s hand. “Tell me.”

 

“I was mean to you before,” Tad sighed. “I was thinking that I didn’t want to have never been nice to you. I like you, even if you are bossy.” Tad grinned when Margaret snickered. “You’re a good friend to Nathan, he loves you. He was the one that saw you on TV first. We stayed glued to the television until they put you in the ambulance.”

 

“Nathan watched that?” Margaret’s heart started to beat faster. “Is that why he’s sick?”

 

“He watched it,” Tad sighed. “They wouldn’t let him come see you, they have a rule about being eight.” Pulling out a phone from the edge of the bed, Tad hit a couple buttons on the screen before moving to gently sit beside the Judge. “This is my dad’s phone. Hi! She’s awake.”

 

“Nathan,” Grace’s voice could be heard calling out to the little boy. “Hey baby, look who is on the phone.”

Rubbing his eyes, Nathan took a good look. “My Judge! I miss you!”

 

“I miss you too,” Margaret looked at how exhausted the little boy look. “Oh sweetie, go back to sleep.”

 

“No, I want to see you.” Wiggling around until he was sitting up on the bed with his bunny, the little guy took the phone. “Did you get a drink of water? That is good for you! Tad? Where are you?”

 

“Right here,” Tad pulled the phone to him. “I wanted you to see her first. She’s okay, I promise. I’m taking good care of her just like I promised. Did you keep your promise?”

 

“I was,” Nathan pointed to a pillow. “I was sleeping right there, but this is better for me.”

 

“I agree,” Tad laughed. “Listen, I promised to be a nicer brother to you so you have to help me do that. Get some more sleep, I have a plan after you are all better! I am going to give the Judge the phone back now.”

 

“You better sleep,” Margaret whispered. “I want you to feel better because I want to snuggle with you.” Watching as the little boy got under the covers and snuggle with his bunny, Margaret allowed Tad to hold onto the phone as she drifted off watching Nathan’s precious little face.

 

“That was a nice thing you just did,” Cyril commented from the doorway. “Better than any medicine that we could give her right now.”

 

“They are best friends,” Tad sighed. “Best friends need each other. I need Gabe when I am scared, he needs me when he is scared.”

 

“Nathan needs you both when he is scared,” Catherine said softly as she pulled the covers up to keep Margaret warm. “What you are doing right now is being there for your brother, I am very proud of you.”

 

“What you said about not letting people only remember the bad things you do,” Tad looked at Margaret. “That was in my head, I wanted her to know I love her, she’s our family.”

 

Smiling as she listened to the little boy’s words, Margaret allowed herself to fall into a deeper sleep knowing she was safe.

 

Awake with a rush of panic, Margaret was relieved to find Jackson by her bedside. “The little girl,” Margaret’s eyes filled with tears. “Is she ok?”

 

“She’s fine, sweetheart. Relax.” Jackson soothed. “I’m going to go get you something to eat that isn’t this awful hospital food.”

 

“I’ll stay with her,” Grace smiled. “Go find food, she needs to get stronger so we can get her out of here.”

 

“Are the men still working?” Margaret asked softly. “They are,” Grace nodded. “They worked through the night, they found two survivors in the rubble. Your building was empty, how did you manage that?”

 

“Earlier in the day,” a man with flowers in his hand walked into the hospital room. “She had a feeling that something was wrong, we noticed a car in the street that didn’t belong there. She had us go pack an overnight bag and head across town to a hotel. We took clothing and anything of value or sentiment that we wanted to save. Your cat is in my hotel suite still, Judge Wilbur.”

 

“Did you report this to anyone?” Grace looked from the tenant to Margaret.

 

“Called the police,” Margaret sighed. “They took hours to get to us, by the time they did the first explosion happened followed by the second, third and fourth closely behind.”

 

“Easy,” Cyril called softly from the doorway as he watched the heart monitor’s tempo start to pick up. “You’re fine, everyone in your building is safe and sound.”

 

“9/11 all over again,” there was silence as Margaret struggled to keep her composure, Cyril, Catherine and Grace gently place a hand of support on her to keep her grounded. “Where is the little girl?”

 

“She’s on the pediatric floor,” Catherine smiled. “She’s such a sweet child. She reminds me of Nathan with her silly smile and the way she clings to the stuffed kitten we gave her. Nathan picked it out.”

 

“It’s the best friend a girl can have!” Nathan announced as he entered into the room being carried by his dad. “Hi Judge!”

 

“Baby,” Margaret’s arms went out to the little guy. “How did you get in? I thought they wouldn’t let you in because you are such a little fella?”

 

“Tad told them that daddy is bad to the bone.” Nathan giggled. “They are scared to mess with him. I missed you! Are you ok?”

 

“I am so much better now that you are here.”

 

“Uncle Cereal? Did you do the doctor thing?” Nathan leaned backwards to look at his uncle. “That’s why I gotted you to come!”

 

“She just woke up, dude.” Taft defended. “I didn’t get a chance.”

 

“Clear out!” Nathan hopped off the bed. “She needs privacies! We can wait in the hall! Do the doctor thing but hurry! I need to cuddle!”

 

“He’s channeling Tad,” Catherine snickered. “How can you not think that is the absolute cutest thing that you have ever heard?”

 

“She’s madly in love with those kids,” Cyril laughed as he turned to his patient. “How are you feeling?”

 

“I hurt,” Margaret sighed. “I am afraid to try to move.”

 

“I know,” Cyril gently started to examine his patient. “You probably do not remember all the tests they put you through when you first got here. As soon as we found out what hospital you were in, I was in constant contact with your doctors. You have a concussion which is why you want to keep falling asleep. You have a bruised kidney and bruised ribs, you are going to hurt for a while. I can keep you comfortable, but you need someone around to make sure you are okay.”

 

“I’m homeless,” Margaret paused. “I lost everything.”

 

“Not everything,” gently pulling the blanket back over his patient, Taft took a seat. “Your cat is safe and sound. You also have family, a group of people that love you very much. We put enough clothes in a bag for overnight, drove straight here to be with you. In fact, I think you need a little reassurance.” Making his way to the door, Taft opened it and waved the family in. “She needs a lot of rest and love. Think we can do that?”

 

“We got this,” Tad smiled as he took his place beside Margaret. “Nathan, do you want to take a nap with her? You have to be easy, her body is all ouchie.”

 

“I will be easy!” Nathan waited until he got picked up and placed on the bed. “Just close your eyes, think about all those birds we see.”

 

“That’s what I say to you!” Margaret snickered.

 

“It works! I always go to sleep.” Snuggled close, Nathan fell asleep quickly as did his friend.

 

“I got this,” Tad reassured the adults. “Go take care of stuff! We should put her in Gianna’s room for a couple days, girls should stay together.”

 

“She will need the hospital bed in there,” Gianna shrugged. “I have been thinking about it, she needs to be with us. We’re her family, she’s ours. You always say we don’t leave anyone behind, this is what we should do.”

 

“I’m not arguing,” Tony smiled. “I already made arrangements for her to be transported to Virginia in the most comfortable way possible. We’ll take care of her.”

 

“And Bay too!” Nathan yawned. “Bay needs me!”

 

“I know,” Tony nodded. “I’m working on that. We’re going to take her home with us; she needs us now.”

 

“No,” Catherine looked at Tony. “All of them died?”

 

“Yes,” Tony nodded. “The father set her on the sidewalk while he went inside to help his wife get their parents out. The building came down on top of them before they could make it out. They pulled their bodies from the rubble an hour ago.”

 

“Oh God,” Margaret whimpered. 

 

“It’s okay,” Tony kissed his friend’s forehead. “I’ve made some calls, we’re going to take care of her. She’s going to be with us. Go back to sleep, it’s okay.”

 

“They said she would be hard to place,” Gibbs whispered from the doorway. “She’s mixed and would not be accepted by either of her cultures.”

 

“She’ll be accepted by us,” Gianna nodded. “That’s all that matters; she’s got a family that loves her. We’ll make sure she’s never bullied or hurt because of that love her parents had for each other.”

 

“You are so darn wise for your age,” Grace smiled. “I am so proud of the young woman you are growing up to be. You have so much love in your heart, Gianna.”

 

“Why are you proud?” Gianna looked at Grace a bit confused. “I know my parents weren’t the best example for me, but I don’t belong to them or with them anymore. I am a DiNozzo and this is who we are.”

 

“Yes, you are sweetie,” Grace whispered. “You’ve come so far from that fragile little girl dying in the hospital bed. There are great things on the horizon for you, young lady. I am so honored to be present to see them happen.”

 

“Aunt Grace,” Tad placed his hand on the shoulder of their friend. “We have plenty of time for you to gush all over my sister, now let’s get a plan together.”

 

“We should do that in the hallway,” Gabe pointed to where Nathan and Margaret were sound asleep. “They need to sleep, they both look like hell.”

 

The men worked through the night and into the next evening, by the time the sun was setting, the rescue and recovery efforts were finished. “How do we tell her?” Tony sighed heavily. “If someone had listened to her earlier, things may have turned out differently. How do I tell her that thirty-four people died?”

 

“You don’t,” Gianna moved beside her dad. 

 

“Daddy?” Nathan called out for his father. “I need to go potty fast!” A sigh of relief left Nathan’s lips as his father hurried into the room and picked him up.

 

“Do you need a nurse?” Gianna questioned Margaret. “I will go find one for you. I brought them bagels earlier, they like me now.”

 

“No,” Margaret sighed. “They are supposed to be disconnecting tubes and things in the morning, then I will be needing help.”

 

“Catheters aren’t fun,” Gianna shrugged. “I have had several, every time I go into the hospital, that is the first thing they want to do. Uncle Cyril got them to stop doing that the last time I was in. They read that the kid they are working on had cancer and they kind of freak out.”

 

“You are worth freaking out over,” Margaret smiled. “Just tell me what it is that is making those beautiful eye so sad. I’m strong enough to handle it, I promise.”

 

“The men have stopped working,” Gianna wiped at her eyes. “They have everyone accounted for. Thirty-four people died, Judge. Brayleigh’s whole family was killed in the bombing. Marty, that lives in the building across the street, he said that her dad put her in a stroller on the sidewalk on the other side of the street and ran back in to help his family get out.”

 

“But they never got out,” Margaret sighed. “I didn’t think that anyone could survive that. If they had listened to us, maybe more lives could have been saved.”

 

“That’s something we will never know,” Jackson stood behind his granddaughter. “What you did, Margaret was brave; you saved so many lives, focus on those saved, not the lives lost.”

 

“When you are allowed to travel,” Gianna eased up on the bed. “We want you to come stay with us. We can share a room until you are feeling well enough to be on your own. Everyone needs someone, Judge. You need us and we want to help you.”

 

“You traveled all night to be here,” Margaret sighed. “I keep thinking about how all of you, dropped everything to come here.”

 

“Nemo will love your cat,” Tad smiled as he walked into the room. “I went over the hotel and met Boots, I told him you were okay and that both of you are going to be coming to our house to live.”

 

“We bribed him with cat nip,” Gabe chimed in. “Got him good and drunk on the stuff; he’s a slobbering fool when drunk. I have seen Uncle Tobias slobber when he is tuned, but Boots beats Tootie!”

 

“I have the things you saved,” Tony carried Nathan back into the room. “They are in my hotel room where they are safe and sound. As soon as Dr. Taft says you are ready to travel, we will get you and Brayleigh home.”

 

“You’re taking her too?” Margaret’s face lit up. “I cannot thank you enough for doing that.”

 

“She deserves the best that life has to offer her,” Tony winked. “Besides, I have a gut feeling that she’s going to have options when it comes to a home. Cyril and Catherine are deeply in love with her, we just have to wait for them to realize it’s okay have a family.”

 

“We already have,” Catherine smiled. “Cyril and I have talked about it, we’d like to adopt her if no other family can be found.”

 

“You better ask Nathan,” Margaret watched as the little boy tried to figure out what was going on.

 

“Nathan,” Catherine took him from Tony. “Would it be okay with you if Brayleigh comes to live at my house to be my little girl? Cyril’s too.”

 

“You want my Bay?” Nathan questioned, his eyes so wide.

 

“Yes, if that is ok with you.” Cyril stooped beside his wife. “We’ll bring her over to see you all the time.”

 

“Wait a minute,” Gabe stepped up beside Nathan. “Don’t agree to anything, they need to be interviewed.”

 

“What’s that mean?” Nathan looked at the Judge.

 

“Remember when I came and asked you lots of questions? That’s an interview.” Margaret watched as Nathan processed the information.

 

“If this kid throws up, what are you going to do?” Gabe questioned.

 

“Clean it up and cuddle with her,” Catherine watched for a clue so to whether or not she got the question right.

 

“If she wets the bed?” Tad’s turn left the Taft’s smiling.

 

“Change sheets, give her a bath, put her in new jammies and tuck her back in.” Cyril smiled.

 

“If she wants a pony?” Gianna giggled.

 

“Tell her no,” Catherine laughed. “We will bring her to ride with Gabe, we don’t have room in our condo for a horse.”

 

“Wants to go out with a boy that is older than her,” Gibbs snickered, he had to get in on the game.

 

“Tell her no, throw him out.” Catherine watched to see the reaction.

 

“What if she wants to go on a shopping spree with her older cousin? A cousin that loves to shop and has fantastic fashion sense?” Gianna started giggling.

 

“Hand over my credit card, trust this amazing cousin to not let her buy leather or get anything pierced without permission.” Taft snorted with laughter at his answer.

 

“If she comes to you with tears in her eyes, her little lip trembling and says that a boy picked on her. What do you do?” Margaret watched as Catherine started to laugh.

 

“We tell her that Tad and Gabe are just silly boy and that they mean no harm.” 

 

“You’ve been thinking about this,” Gabe started to pace around the room. “I rest my case. Nathan, do you have any questions?”

 

“Do you promise to love her, read to her, sing to her and hug her for as long as is all allowed?” Nathan was so serious, he had business to conduct on Brayleigh’s behalf.

 

“We promise,” Cyril nodded. “Cross my heart.”

 

“I now pounce on you as a family!” The little boy started wiggling with excitement. “This is the best.”

 

“Wait! We have to seal the deal with a gesture,” Gabe started to think. “Kissing is disgusting, hugging is overrated.”

 

“Spit swear,” Tad spit in his hand and extended it. “Truth time, Cereal. If you mean it, a little spit won’t hurt you.”

 

“Do it,” Gianna laughed as she pushed Shelby closer. “Tell them.”

 

“My word, Thaddeus! I dare say that is very unsanitary.” Shelby’s Ducky impression left everyone gasping for air.


	9. Chapter 9

“Care to join me on a walk, Doc?” Gibbs watched his friend stare out at traffic from the lobby of the hospital. “There is a nice sitting area down the sidewalk, get some air.”

 

“How’d you do it, Gibbs?” Taft questioned softly. “How did you open your heart to all those children, after having it destroyed by the loss of your daughter?”

 

“The boys,” Gibbs sighed. “The boys were easy, they didn’t come with reminders of ribbons and bows. Shelby, she was so little when Tony got her, she was a reminder of the things I missed with Kelly. I wasn’t there for so much, active duty kept me from being the dad that I wanted to be.”

 

“How’d you heal?” Taft looked at his friend. “You are a fantastic grandfather to those kids. It’s been a long time since I saw the pain in your eyes that I always figured was because of losing Kelly.”

 

“Gianna,” Gibbs made his way to the closest bench. “When that little girl was battling for her life, it almost broke me. I watched her struggle to breathe and the heart monitor slowing down, knowing the end was coming. There was something in her face, that showed me peace. When she got a second chance, I think I did too. I could see so much of my daughter in her, it made me hurt.”

 

“I don’t think that I understand.” Taft watched as his friend struggled to find the words to explain. “If it’s too hard, you don’t have to tell me.”

 

“I wanted to kill myself,” Gibbs whispered. “I was ready, I sat with a gun in my hand wanting to pull the trigger. They were gone, I wanted to be with them. The man that killed them, he was dead. There was nothing left, no reason for me to even be here.”

 

“What stopped you?” Taft whispered softly.

 

Snickering lightly, Gibbs turned to his friend. “I didn’t want to disappoint them. I knew that suicide would have been the last thing they wanted for me. It was so damn hard to live, to fight. So many times, I was hurt in the line of duty and I tried not to fight, but they pushed me to go back.”

 

“They?”

 

“I could hear them, see them. Kelly telling me that I was needed here, it wasn’t my time.” Gibbs swallowed hard, his hold was slipping. “I couldn’t defy her, she was so insistent.”

 

“Did you tell Grace about these dreams?” Taft was suddenly worried about his friend; the dreams were bordering on delusions.

 

“No,” Jethro shook his head. “I didn’t tell her. By the time, I felt comfortable enough to talk to her about things, Tony’s family happened. They changed everything. Tony changed everything long before that,” Gibbs sighed.

 

“Best thing that ever happened to you,” Grace smiled as she walked up. “Hiring that cop from Baltimore.”

 

“It was,” Gibbs nodded. “How long have you been listening, Grace?”

 

“Long enough to tell you that you aren’t or weren’t going crazy,” squeezing Jethro’s shoulder lightly. “The psychiatrist in me should tell you that you need some sessions to work through what you just said. The friend in me, feels that maybe, somehow, your daughter did visit you to keep you here with us. I happen to be open minded enough to think that it could happen.”

 

“I don’t think I would want to wake up, if Paul came to me in a dream.” Taft sighed. “I miss him so much, there is a knot in my stomach that has just pulsated there since the day he died.”

 

“Brayleigh makes it hurt less, doesn’t she?” Gibbs smiled. “She’s precious, Doc. You have the right to be happy. You should have everything that Tony’s family has given me to heal.”

 

“Gianna?” Tony stepped closer to his daughter. “You ok?”

 

“Yes,” the young girl wiped at her tears. “I love him so much, daddy. Did you know that he was going to kill himself?”

 

“No,” Tony shook his head. “That was before I knew him. Did you listen to all of what he said? You, my beautiful daughter, healed his heart.”

 

“I heard him,” Gianna whispered. “If my cancer comes back, I will break it too.”

 

“It would break more than just your grandpa’s heart; I refuse to believe that it is ever coming back. As much as you are loved, that cancer knows better than to even mess with you. You’re a DiNozzo now, that’s enough to scare it away.”

 

“Dad?” Gianna took her dad’s hand and walked him over to a bench that was hidden from Taft and her grandpa. “Uncle Tim explained to me what you used to be like. Do you miss it?”

 

“What did he say?” Tony was curious and a bit concerned.

 

“He said you were the best NCIS agent that he has ever worked without, other than grandpa. He told me that when things got so serious that he wanted to run away or break down crying, you were always there with a distraction to keep him sane. He told me how you’d glue his CDs to his desk drawer, glued his fingers to his keyboard, and even about the time that you made his computer growl and bark at him after that dog attack. He said that you are the whole reason he didn’t give up and that you made him the agent that he is now.”

 

“Wow,” Tony struggled to gain composure. “I do miss it from time to time, but I love you guys so much that everything I sacrificed is worth it. You and your siblings complete my life, it’s what I spent so long searching for.”

 

“Why did you never leave Grandpa’s team? Uncle Leon said that you could have had your own team.”

 

“I could have,” Tony sighed. “If I had left and something happened to your grandpa, I would never have been able to forgive myself. Before you guys, he was all the family that I had. I couldn’t risk losing him.”

 

“When I think about my family,” Gianna sighed. “All I remember is you guys. I don’t think about my biological family. Is that okay?”

 

“It is okay,” Tony reassured. “I only want you to remember good things, never the bad stuff.”

 

“Uncle Cyril and Aunt Catherine are going to be great parents,” Gianna smiled. “We should go check on the Judge, the boys are probably driving her nuts.”

 

Walking into the hospital, Tony smiled when he found Gibbs, Grace and Cyril waiting for them to catch up. “Ready to go rescue the patient from the boys?” Gibbs laughed as he watched Gianna sigh. “I agree princess, they are exhausting sometimes.”

 

“The patient’s in this hospital, they are say are pretty sick. I think that’s because, your food tastes like ick. Oh I don’t want no more of hospital life, gee Doc, I want to go home.” Tad belted out.

 

“This patient in this hospital is getting pretty ticked, every time I fall asleep there is a needle stick. Oh I don’t want no more of hospital life, gee Doc, I want to go home.” Margaret joined in.

 

“The doctors in this hospital, they really show they care. It’s really too bad, they don’t have no hair. I don’t want no more of hospital life, gee Doc, I want to go home!” Gabe was so proud of his contribution. His smile turned to giggles as Cyril stood in the door rubbing his head.

 

“The dad in this hospital hopes you’re not being bad, because if you are you’re going to be really sad. I know you are tired of hospital life, Gee Doc when can we go home?” Tony turned to Taft with a look.

 

“Gee Doc, she wants to go, when will you let her go, Gee Doc she wants to go home!” the whole room belted out, the nurses standing back laughing, unable to stop long enough to ask them to be quiet.

 

“Let’s see how she does tomorrow,” Taft snickered. “I need to run a few more tests and we’ll work at getting her back to Virginia.”

 

“My cat,” Margaret whispered.

 

“Don’t worry,” Tony moved to sit with his friend. “We’ll take your cat and the things you removed from the apartment and a few things we found. The most important thing is that you are getting stronger and that you are going home where you will have a family to take care of you. You belong with us, Margaret.”

 

Three weeks later, Margaret sat watching out the window as Nathan played with Brayleigh in the back yard of the DiNozzo home. 

 

“You look bored,” Tony smiled as he walked in from being at the apartments. “How was your day?”

 

“He was a little angel,” Margaret sighed. “Told me everything he learned at preschool, asked about my day. We ate a snack together and they went outside to play. Jackson was here earlier, we played card and watched a movie.”

 

“Sounds boring,” Tony laughed. “I have a proposition for you. Do you think you’re strong enough for an outing?”

 

“Please,” Margret sighed. “Your home is beautiful, but I have seen the same rooms every day for three weeks. I need out of here.”

 

“Tony?” Grace walked into the kitchen. “Got your message. What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing is wrong,” Tony winked. “We’re going on an outing, I thought you might like to come along. I’ll get Nathan, Catherine is here to pick up Brayleigh. He’s going to be so excited.” Making his way out to his son, Tony picked up the little boy and explained the plan. Margaret watched, a bit curious, as Nathan’s face broke into a huge smile. 

 

“We’re ready to roll,” Tony put Nathan on the floor and watched as he grabbed bunny off the kitchen chair. “I’ll help you into the car, you lean on me.”

 

“Where are we going, DiNozzo?” Grace sighed with irritation. “Tony?”

 

Tony didn’t answer, he didn’t want to ruin the surprise. Making his way to the apartment complex, he pulled in front of what would be the administration offices. “That’s the store that Jackson is working on.” Tony pointed across the parking lot. “Those are the apartments.” Taking a wheelchair from the back of his SUV, Tony eased the Judge into the seat. “This building is for administrative purposes. Nathan, you want to open that door for me?”

 

“This is great!” Nathan pushed with all his might. “This has an office and a place to live. See, Judge! Whoa! This is nice, daddy.”

 

“Glad you like it,” Tony laughed. “Fixing the walls and replacing the carpet and counters made a huge difference. Now, I want you to look around and see what you think. This room, I figure could be a sitting area for anyone that comes to see you. You would have a video camera so you could see them. This apartment would be yours, I am going to put in a private entrance at the back so that employees can come and go without being caught by tenants.”

 

“Employees?” Margaret looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

“You are absolutely perfect for the job of site director,” Tony smiled as he watched Margret’s eyes dance. “You can live with us forever, or you can use your insurance money to furnish the apartment.”

 

Margaret looked in the door, easing herself out of the wheelchair. “Is there a door into the apartment that isn’t connected to the office?”

 

“There is,” Tony walked her over to the kitchen. “It comes from the parking lot into the kitchen, you will probably do major grocery shopping elsewhere. I am hoping that you come to dinner with us, a lot.”

 

“She will,” Nathan giggled as he started looking around. “Look at how big the bathroom is! Daddy! You made it beautiful.”

 

“I may have redone it,” Tony blushed. “I wanted you to have the best of everything.”

 

“Which is why you gutted and redid this apartment,” Margaret hugged her friend. “You changed the layout, didn’t you?”

 

“I did,” Tony nodded. “I wanted your kitchen by the door and your bedroom at the back of the apartment so that you wouldn’t get someone knocking on your window and frightening you out of a sound sleep. There is an alarm system going in tomorrow. If you don’t want the position or the apartment, that is okay. I don’t want you to be pressured.”

 

“I do want it,” Margaret smiled.

 

“Now, Grace,” Tony took his friend by the arm. “Next to Margaret’s office is a nice functional office for a psychiatrist to help treat the mental health of our tenants and the other veterans of the area that do not want to travel all the way to Walter Reed. From what we have polled, to see if we could keep you busy, you would have about eighty regular patients. We will hire someone to manage the office for scheduling, buy you the most up to date medical billing and documentation software. Anything you need to make you thrive at private practice, if you want to do private practice. I already have the VA contract to get payment for a house doctor, Jimmy wants to do that. His office, with exam room, is at the end of the complex. He will be here twice a month; his nurse will be here daily to monitor the tenants and to communicate with Dr. Palmer.”

 

“Yes,” Grace walked around her office. “This is just what I need, yes.”

 

“Everyone say yes?” Jethro asked as he made his way into Grace’s office. “Where’s Judge Wilbur?”

 

“With Nathan,” Tony pointed towards the Administration office. “They are looking at her apartment.”

 

Walking into the apartment, Gibbs stopped to listen as the two were talking. “I could come sleep here sometime,” Nathan walked around the big space. “I’m just a little guy!”

 

“Yes, you are.” Judge Wilbur snickered. “You can come visit me all the time, I think we will have a slumber party after I get my furniture. I have to be able to feed you.”

 

“Yep,” Nathan giggled as he ran over to the back door. “You got nice flowers out here.”

 

“I do?” Margaret walked out onto her small porch. “My word, they are beautiful.”

 

“Nathan picked the kind,” Jethro smiled. “I just planted. You sure you want to do this?”

 

“I am,” The older woman looked around. “I never thought I would belong anywhere again. New York was my home since the day I was born.”

 

“Your heart belongs to us now,” Jackson winked as he walked up on the porch. “You’re glowing, it’s beautiful on you.”

 

“Tell it to my heart, my achy break heart…. I don’t think you’re a real man.” Tad belted out as he walked into the apartment. “Whoa, Nice digs Mags!”

 

“What did you just call me?” Margaret laughed.

 

“Grandpa, I need a lift.” Nathan’s arms shot up. “Hide me, it’s going to be scary!”

 

“Lighten up kid!” Tad started looking around. “A little paper, some flowers, and lace, we could make this place beautiful. I’ll have my people, call your people to work on it.”

 

“My people?” Margaret snickered. “Where are these people?”

 

“Step aside,” Tad walked over to the door. “Oh Anthony,” Tad called out. “Would you be a dear chap and help Mags here with the minute details that go with turning this formerly deplorable space into something that she could reside in?”

 

“What?” Tony looked at his son, confused.

 

“We need to find the right lighting to brighten this dreary décor up,” Tad looked at Gabe. “Make a note, we need some recessed lighting in the kitchen so she doesn’t cut her damn fingers off cooking. We should have better lighting in the bathroom. Statistics show that the elderly need to have adequate lighting to be able to hit the hole to pee.”

 

“Got it,” Gabe smiled. “Next?”

 

“Well, we simply cannot have any uneven surfaces,” Tad tsked as he walked. “I need to speak with the contractor that calls these floors even. Get him on the phone, Anthony. Don’t dawdle now, be a good fella and place the call.”

 

“Who are you?” Tony blinked hard.

 

“Thaddeus Gabriel Paddington DiNozzo, small space designer at your service. Now listen, Anthony, time is my money, dear boy. Be so kind as to get your fella on the phone. We need to talk about moving this window, widening this door frame, evening out this floor and placing some safety devices in the loo. We cannot have our dear Margaret falling and breaking her posterior, can we?”

 

“What is going on here?” Grace laughed. “Who are you channeling?”

 

“He’s been watching design shows,” Gabe whispered. “He wants to earn some money this summer being a small space designer. Little houses are the wave of the future.”

 

“My Dearest, Grace.” Tad turned on his heels. “I dare say that this new office of yours is rather depressing. I was thinking a disco ball and juke box would liven the space up.”

 

“HELP,” Grace called as Tad walked her out of the apartment.

 

“His DiNozzo side is showing,” Gibbs snickered.

 

“Can I look now?” Nathan peeked a little from where he was hiding his face in his grandpa’s neck. “Is it safe?”

 

“It’s safe, buddy.” Gibbs snorted with laughter.

 

“Honest Engine?” Nathan mumbled in Jethro’s neck.

 

“Honest Engine,” everyone called out.


End file.
